Can Radishchev be called a true son of the fatherland? Son of the Fatherland Alexander Nikolaevich Radishchev. Discourse on work and idleness

General description of comedy.

This lyrical comedy, as Chekhov himself calls it, is aimed at revealing the social theme of the death of old noble estates. The action of the comedy takes place on the estate of L.A. Ranevskaya, a landowner, and is tied to the fact that, due to debts, the inhabitants have to sell the cherry orchard so beloved by everyone. Before us is a nobility in a state of decline. Ranevskaya and Gaev (her brother) are impractical people and do not know how to manage things. Being people of weak character, they abruptly change their mood, easily shed tears over a trivial matter, willingly talk idle talk and organize luxurious holidays on the eve of their ruin. In the play, Chekhov also shows people of the new generation, perhaps the future lies with them. These are Anya Ranevskaya and Petya Trofimov (former teacher of Ranevskaya’s deceased son Grisha). New people must be strong fighters for future happiness. True, it is difficult to classify Trofimov as one of such people: he is a “klutz,” not too strong and, in my opinion, not smart enough for the great struggle. Hope is for young Anya. “We will plant a new garden, more luxurious than this...” - she believes, and in this faith is the only option in the play for a happy development of the situation for Russia.

1) Form: a) problem part (subjective beginning), the world of a work of art: Main characters (images): landowner Ranevskaya Lyubov Andreevna, her daughters Anya and Varya, her brother Gaev Leonid Andreevich, merchant Lopakhin Ermolai Alekseevich, student Trofimov Pyotr Sergeevich, landowner Simeonov-Pishchik Boris Borisovich, governess Charlotte Ivanovna, clerk Epikhodov Semyon Panteleevich, maid Dunyasha, footman Firs and Yasha, as well as several minor characters (passerby, station master, postal official, guests and servants). In addition, we highlight the “garden” as an independent hero; it takes its place in the system of images of the play. b) Structure (composition) of the work, organization of the work at the macrotext level: the comedy consists of four acts. All of them are intertwined plotwise and chronologically, forming a single picture of events. c) Artistic speech

This work is a comedy, so it is very emotional. We note that the text of the play is full of historicisms and archaisms, denoting objects and phenomena from the life of people of the early 20th century (lackey, nobles, master). There is colloquial vocabulary and colloquial forms of words in the servants’ remarks (“I’m good, what a fool I’ve been!”, “Charming, after all, I’ll take one hundred and eighty rubles from you... I’ll take it...”), there are also numerous borrowings from French and German languages, direct transliteration and foreign words as such (“Pardon!”, “Ein, zwei, drei!”, “They are dancing grand-rond in the hall”).

subject - This is a phenomenon of the external and internal life of a person, which is the subject of study of a work of art. Work under study polythematic, because contains more than one topic.

According to the method of expression, topics are divided into: 1) explicitly expressed: theme of love for home(“Children’s room, my dear, beautiful room...”, “Oh, my garden!”, “Dear, dear closet! I greet your existence, which for more than a hundred years has been directed towards the bright ideals of goodness and justice”), theme of family, love for relatives(“My darling has arrived!”, “my beloved child”, “I suddenly felt sorry for my mother, so sorry, I hugged her head, squeezed her with my hands and couldn’t let go. Then my mother kept caressing her and crying”), old age theme(“I’m tired of you, grandfather. I wish you would die sooner,” “Thank you, Firs, thank you, my old man. I’m so glad that you’re still alive”), love theme(“And what’s there to hide or remain silent about, I love him, that’s clear. I love him, I love him... This is a stone on my neck, I’m going to the bottom with it, but I love this stone and I can’t live without it,” “ You have to be a man, at your age you have to understand those who love. And you have to love yourself... you have to fall in love”; nature conservation theme, the theme of the future of Russia.

2) cultural and historical topics: the theme of the future of Russia

According to the classification of philologist Potebnya:

2) Internal form (shaped structures, plot elements, etc.)

3) External form (words, text structure, composition, etc.)

Problems of the work.

The main problems of this play are questions about the fate of the Motherland and the duty and responsibility of the younger generation. The problem is implicitly expressed, since the author conveys this idea through the symbol of the cherry orchard, revealed from various aspects: temporal, figurative and spatial).

Specific issues: a) social (social relationships, building a new life, the problem of a noble leisurely society); b) socio-psychological (inner experiences of the characters); d) historical (the problem of nobles getting used to the abolition of serfdom).

Chronotope.

Straightforward, the action takes place in May 1900, immediately after the abolition of serfdom, and ends in October. Events take place in chronological order on Ranevskaya’s estate, but there are references to the heroes’ past.

Characteristics of heroes.

It is worth noting that there are no sharply positive or sharply negative characters in the work.

Appearance The heroes are given very briefly, and mainly only clothing is described. The text does not contain characteristics of all heroes.

Lopakhin - “in a white vest, yellow shoes”, “with a pig’s snout”, “thin, delicate fingers, like an artist’s”

Trofimov – 26-27 years old, “in a shabby old uniform, with glasses”, “hair is not thick”, “How ugly you have become, Petya”, “stern face”

Firs - 87 years old, “in a jacket and white vest, shoes on his feet.”

Lyubov Ranevskaya, landowner - “She is a good person. An easy, simple person,” very sentimental. He lives idly out of habit, despite the fact that he is completely in debt.

It seems to the heroine that everything will work out by itself, but the world collapses: the garden goes to Lopakhin. The heroine, having lost her estate and her homeland, goes back to Paris.

Anya, Ranevskaya's daughter, is in love with Petya Trofimov and is under his influence. She is passionate about the idea that the nobility is guilty before the Russian people and must atone for their guilt. Anya believes in future happiness, a new, better life (“We will plant a new garden, more luxurious than this”, “Goodbye, home! Goodbye, old life!”).

Leonid Andreevich Gaev is Ranevskaya’s brother, “a man of the eighties,” a man confused by words, whose vocabulary consists mainly of “billiard words” (“Cut into a corner!”, “Doublet into a corner... Croise in the middle...” .") and complete nonsense (“Dear, dear closet! I greet your existence, which for more than a hundred years has been directed towards the bright ideals of goodness and justice; your silent call for fruitful work has not weakened for a hundred years, supporting (through tears) in the generations of our kind, vigor, faith in a better future and nurturing in us the ideals of goodness and social self-awareness"). One of the few who comes up with various plans to save the cherry orchard.

Ermolai Alekseevich Lopakhin is a merchant, “he is a good, interesting person,” he characterizes himself as “a man with a man.” He himself comes from a family of serfs, and now is a rich man who knows where and how to invest money. Lopakhin is a very contradictory hero, in whom callousness and rudeness fight with hard work and ingenuity.

Pyotr Trofimov - Chekhov describes him as an “eternal student”, already old, but still not graduated from the university.

Ranevskaya, angry at him during an argument about love, shouts: “You are twenty-six or twenty-seven years old, and you are still a second-grade high school student!” Lopakhin ironically asks, “How many years have you been studying at the university?” This hero belongs to the generation of the future, he believes in it, denies love and is in search of truth.

Epikhodov, Ranevskaya and Gaev’s clerk, is madly in love with their maid Dunyasha, who speaks of him a little ambiguously: “He is a meek man, but sometimes when he starts talking, you won’t understand anything.

It’s both good and sensitive, just incomprehensible. I kind of like him. because, among other things, it creates an image of time: in the first and third acts, this is an image of the past and present (the comfort and warmth of one’s home after a long separation (“My room, my windows, as if I had never left”, “The living room, separated by an arch from the hall . The chandelier is burning")), in the fourth and last act - this is a picture of the future, the realities of the new world, the emptiness after the departure of the heroes (“The scenery of the first act. There are no curtains on the windows, no paintings, there is a little furniture left, which is folded in one corner, definitely for sale. There is a feeling of emptiness. Suitcases, travel items, etc. are stacked near the exit door and at the back of the stage. The door to the left is open."

Thus, the interior performs a descriptive and characteristic function.

One of the works studied in the school curriculum is A.P. Chekhov’s play “The Cherry Orchard.” A brief summary of the play “The Cherry Orchard” by action will help you navigate the content, break the text into plot lines, and highlight the main and minor characters. Events related to the sale of a beautiful cherry orchard and the loss of property by the careless owners of old merchant Russia will pass before your eyes.

Act one

The action begins on an estate located somewhere in the outback of Russia. It's the month of May and the cherry trees are blooming. The owners are waiting in the house where the whole play will take place. The maid Dunyasha and the merchant Lopakhin talk while they are waiting. Lopakhin recalls how, as a teenager, he was hit in the face by his father, a merchant in a shop. Lyubov Raevskaya (one of those who should come) calmed him down, calling him a peasant. Now he has changed his position in society, but in his soul he remains a member of the peasant breed. He falls asleep while reading and does not see beauty in many things. The clerk Epikhodov comes with flowers, he is embarrassed and drops them on the floor. The clerk leaves quickly, clumsily dropping his chair. Dunyasha boasts that Semyon Epikhodov proposed to her.

The arrivals and their escorts pass through the room. The landowner Ranevskaya Lyubov Andreevna has two daughters: her own Anna, seventeen years old, and her adopted Varya, twenty-four years old. Her brother, Leonid Gaev, came with her. The owners are happy to see the house; pleasant memories of the past come flooding back to them. From a conversation with her sister, it turns out that Varya is waiting for an offer from Lopakhin, but he delays and remains silent. Firs (servant) serves his mistress like a dog, trying to predict all her desires.

The merchant Lopakhin warns the owners that the estate is up for auction. He will be sold if some action is not taken. Lopakhin proposes to cut down the garden, divide the land into plots and sell it as dachas. Brother and sister are against cutting down cherry trees. Firs remembers how many things were made from the aromatic berries. Lopakhin explains that summer residents are a new class that will soon fill all of Russia. Gaev does not believe the merchant. He boasts about the age of the cabinet, which is 100 years old. He addresses the furniture with pathos, practically crying over the closet. Emotions cause silence and bewilderment of those present.

Landowner Pischik hopes that everything will resolve itself. Ranevskaya does not understand that she is ruined, she “wastes” money, which is almost none, and cannot give up her lordly habits.

A mother came to visit the young footman Yakov; she is sitting in the servants’ room waiting for her son, but he is in no hurry to come out to her.

Gaev promises Anna to solve the difficult situation with the garden, to find a way out that will allow her not to sell the estate. Dunyasha shares her problems with her sister, but no one is interested in them. Among the guests there is another character - Pyotr Trofimov. He belongs to the category of “eternal students” who do not know how to live independently. Peter speaks beautifully, but does nothing.

Act two

The author continues to introduce the reader to the characters of the play. Charlotte doesn't remember how old she is. She doesn't have a real passport. Once upon a time, her parents took her to fairs, where she gave performances, performing somersaults.

Yasha is proud that he has been abroad, but cannot give an accurate description of everything he saw. Yakov plays on Dunyasha’s feelings, is openly rude, the lover does not notice the deception and insincerity. Epikhodov boasts of his education, but cannot decide whether to live or shoot himself.

The owners are returning from the restaurant. From the conversation it is clear that they do not believe in selling the estate. Lopakhin tries to reason with the owners of the estate, but in vain. The merchant warns that the rich man Deriganov will come to the auction. Gaev dreams of financial help from his landowner aunt. Lyubov Andreevna admits that she is wasting money. Her fate cannot be considered happy: she was still quite young and remained a widow; she married a man who easily falls into debt. After the loss of his son (drowned), he goes abroad. She has been living next to her sick husband for three years. I bought myself a dacha, but it was sold for debts. The husband left without property and left for someone else. Lyubov tried to poison herself, but was probably scared. She came to Russia to her native estate, hoping to improve her situation. She received a telegram from her husband in which he called her to return. The woman’s memories take place against the backdrop of the music of a Jewish orchestra. Love dreams of inviting musicians to the estate.

Lopakhin admits that his life is gray and monotonous. His father, an idiot, beat him with a stick, he became a “blockhead” with handwriting like a pig. Lyubov Andreevna proposes to marry Varya, Ermolai Alekseevich is not against it, but these are just words.

Trofimov joins the conversation. Lopakhin, chuckling, asks the student’s opinion about himself. Peter compares him to a predatory beast that eats everything in its path. The conversation is about pride and intelligence of a person. Gaev turns to nature with pathos, his beautiful words are rudely interrupted, and he falls silent. A passing passerby asks Varya for 30 kopecks, the girl screams in fear. Lyubov Andreevna, without hesitation, hands over the gold one. Lopakhin warns about the imminent sale of the cherry orchard. It seems that no one hears him.

Anya and Trofimov remain on stage. Young people talk about the future. Trofimov is surprised by Varya, who is afraid of the emergence of feelings between him and Anna. They are above love, which can prevent them from being free and happy.

Act three

There is a ball on the estate, many people are invited: a postal official, a station chief. The conversation is about horses, the animal figure of Pishchik, and cards. The ball takes place on the day of the auction. Gaev received power of attorney from his grandmother. Varya hopes that he will be able to buy a house with a debt transfer; Lyubov Andreevna understands that there is not enough money for the deal. She frantically waits for her brother. Ranevskaya invites Varya to marry Lopakhin, she explains that she cannot propose to the man herself. Gaev and Lopakhin return from the auction. Gaev has purchases in his hands and tears in his eyes. He brought food, but these are unusual products, but delicacies: anchovies and Kerch herrings. Lyubov Andreevna asks about the results of the auction. Lopakhin announces who bought the cherry orchard. It turns out that he is the lucky one and the new owner of the garden. Ermolai talks about himself in the third person, he is proud and cheerful. The estate where his father and grandfather were enslaved became his property. Lopakhin talks about the auction, how he raised the price in front of the rich man Deriganov, how much he gave in excess of his debt. Varya throws the keys in the middle of the room and leaves. The new owner picks them up, smiling at the acquisition. The merchant demands music, the orchestra plays. He does not notice the feelings of women: Lyubov Andreevna is crying bitterly, Anya is kneeling in front of her mother. The daughter tries to calm her mother down, promising her a new garden and a quiet, joyful life.

Act four

The men come to say goodbye to the owners who are leaving the house. Lyubov Andreevna gives her wallet. Lopakhin offers a drink, but explains that he was busy and bought only one bottle at the station. He regrets the money he spent, as much as 8 rubles. Only Yakov drinks. It’s already October, the house is as cold as the souls of many present. Trofimov advises the new owner to wave his arms less. The habit is not good, according to the “learned” student. The merchant chuckles, ironizing about Peter's future lectures. He offers money, but Peter refuses. Lopakhin again reminds of his peasant origin, but Trofimov says that his father was a pharmacist, and this means nothing. He promises to show the way to the highest happiness and truth. Lopakhin is not upset by Trofimov’s refusal to borrow. He boasts again about how hard he works. In his opinion, there are some people who are needed simply to circulate in nature; they have no business or benefit. Everyone is preparing to leave. Anna wonders if Firs was taken to the hospital. Yakov entrusted the task to Yegor; he is no longer interested in it. His mother came to see him again, but he is not happy, she is driving him out of patience. Dunyasha throws herself on his neck, but there is no response. Yasha’s soul is already in Paris, he reproaches the girl for indecent behavior. Lyubov Andreevna says goodbye to the house, she looks around the places familiar from childhood. The woman leaves for Paris, she has the money that her grandmother gave to buy the estate, it’s not much and it won’t last long.

Gaev got a job at a bank for 6 thousand a year. Lopakhin doubts his hard work and ability to stay in the banking service.

Anna is happy with the changes in her life. She will be preparing for her high school exams. The girl hopes to meet her mother soon; they will read books and explore a new spiritual world.

Pishchik appears in the house, everyone is afraid that he will ask for money again, but everything happens the other way around: Pishchik returns part of the debt to Lopakhin and Ranevskaya. He has a happier fate, it was not for nothing that he suggested hoping for “maybe.” White clay was found on his estate, which brought him income.

Lyubov Andreevna cares (in words) about two things: the sick Firs and Varya. About the old servant they tell her that Yakov sent the old man to the hospital. The second sadness is her adopted daughter, whom she dreams of marrying Lopakhin. The mother calls the girl, Ermolai promises to put an end to the proposal that Ranevskaya desired. Varya appears in the room. The groom asks about her plans when he finds out that she is going to the Ragulins as housekeepers, talks about her departure and quickly leaves the room. The proposal did not take place. Gaev tries to pathetically say goodbye to the house and garden, but he is rudely cut off.

Brother and sister are left alone in someone else's house. Gaev is in despair, Lyubov Andreevna is crying. Everyone is leaving.

Firs approaches the door, but it turns out to be closed. They forgot about the old servant. He gets upset, but not about himself, but about the masters. First he wants to sit, then lie down. Firs' strength leaves him and he lies down motionless. The sound of an ax is heard in the silence. The cherry orchard is being cut down.

Characters: Lyubov Andreevna Ranevskaya, landowner; Anya, her daughter, 17 years old; Varya, her adopted daughter, 24 years old; Leonid Andreevich Gaev, brother of Ranevskaya; Ermolai Alekseevich Lopakhin, merchant; Petr Sergeevich Trofimov, student; Boris Borisovich Simeonov-Pishchik, landowner; Charlotte Ivanovna, governess; Semyon Panteleevich Epikhodov, clerk; Dunyasha, maid; Firs, footman, old man 87 years old; Yasha, a young footman. The action takes place on Ranevskaya's estate.

Retelling plan

1. Ranevskaya and her daughter return from Paris to their estate.
2. Lopakhin proposes a plan to save the estate put up for auction.
3. Gaev and Ranevskaya hope to save him in another way, but they have no money.
4. Ranevskaya talks about her life.
5. During the auction, Ranevskaya throws a party.
6. The news of Lopakhin’s purchase of the cherry orchard stuns everyone.
7. Farewell to the cherry orchard.

Retelling

Action 1

It's May, the cherry trees are blooming. In the room, which is still called the nursery, the maid Dunyasha, Lopakhin and Epikhodov. They talk about how the hostess Lyubov Andreevna Ranevskaya and her daughter Anna should arrive from Paris soon. Lopakhin: “Lyubov Andreevna lived abroad for five years, I don’t know what she’s become now... She’s a good person. An easy, simple person. I remember when I was a boy of about fifteen, my deceased father - he was selling in a shop here in the village back then - hit me in the face with his fist, blood started coming out of my nose... Lyubov Andreevna, still young, led me to the washstand, in this the room itself. “Don’t cry,” he says, “little man, he’ll heal before the wedding...” My father, it’s true, was a man, but here I am in a white vest and yellow shoes. With a pig's snout in a row of Kalash... Just now he's rich, a lot of money, but if you think about it and figure it out, then he's a man..."

Lopakhin doesn’t like that Dunyasha behaves like a young lady. Epikhodov constantly drops something and bumps into chairs: “Every day some misfortune happens to me. And I don’t complain, I’m used to it and even smile.” Soon the voices of those who have arrived are heard, and everyone goes to meet the hostess.

Lyubov Andreevna, Gaev, Anya, Charlotte, Varya, Lopakhin, Epikhodov and Dunyasha appear. Lyubov Andreevna rejoices at returning home: “The nursery, my dear, a wonderful room...”

Everyone leaves except Anya and Dunyasha. The maid begins to tell her that Epikhodov proposed to her, but Anya does not listen to her. Varya comes: “My darling has arrived! The beauty has arrived! Anya: “We arrive in Paris, it’s cold and snowy there. I speak French badly. Mom lives on the fifth floor, I come to her, she has some French ladies, an old priest with a book, and it’s smoky, uncomfortable. I suddenly felt sorry for my mother, so sorry, I hugged her head, squeezed her with my hands and couldn’t let go. Mom then kept caressing and crying... She had already sold her dacha near Menton, she had nothing left, nothing. I also didn’t have a penny left, we barely got there. And mom doesn't understand! We sit down at the station for lunch, and she demands the most expensive thing and gives the footmen a ruble each as a tip...” Varya says that the estate and the cherry orchard will be sold for debts, because they have no money left at all. Anya asks if Lopakhin has proposed to Varya yet. Varya: “I think so, nothing will work out for us. He has a lot to do, he has no time for me... and he doesn’t pay attention. Everyone talks about our wedding, everyone congratulates us, but in reality there is nothing, everything is like a dream...”

They remember how their father died six years ago and their little brother Grisha drowned in the river. It turns out that his former teacher Petya Trofimov came to the estate. The sisters are afraid that he might remind Lyubov Andreevna about the boy’s death.

Enter Firs, Lyubov Andreevna, Gaev, Lopakhin and Simeonov-Pishchik. Lopakhin tries to start a conversation about the cherry orchard, but Lyubov Andreevna does not listen to him, she is too excited about her return home. Lopakhin says that an auction has already been scheduled, but the estate can still be saved. To do this, you just need to divide it into plots for dachas. Since the place is beautiful, these plots are quickly rented, and the owners will be able to pay off the debts for the estate. True, for the dachas it will be necessary to cut down the cherry orchard. Neither Raevskaya nor Gaev want to hear anything about cutting down the garden: “What nonsense!” Varya gives her mother two telegrams from Paris, but she tears them up without reading them. Gaev makes a pathetic speech to the bookcase: “Dear, respected bookcase! I greet your existence, which for more than a hundred years has been directed towards the bright ideals of goodness and justice; your silent call to fruitful work has not weakened for a hundred years, maintaining (through tears) in generations of our family vigor, faith in a better future and nurturing in us the ideals of goodness and social self-awareness.” Everyone is embarrassed for him.

Petya Trofimov enters. Ranevskaya does not recognize him at first, but remembering that he is her son’s former teacher, she begins to cry. Ranevskaya: “What, Petya? Why are you so stupid? Why have you aged? Trofimov: “One woman in the carriage called me this: shabby gentleman.” Ranevskaya: “You were just a boy then, a cute student, and now you have sparse hair and glasses. Are you still a student? Trofimov: “I must be an eternal student.”

Varya tells Yasha that his mother came to see him from the village and wants to see him, but he replies: “It’s really necessary. I could come tomorrow.” Everyone leaves, only Gaev and Varya remain. Gaev says about his sister: “She married a non-nobleman and behaved one cannot say very virtuously. She is good, kind, nice, I love her very much, but no matter how you come up with mitigating circumstances, I still have to admit that she is vicious. You can feel it in her slightest movement.” Gaev is going to take out a loan from the bank, he suggests that the Yaroslavl grandmother and Lopakhin can lend money, then the estate will not be sold at auction. Anya believes him.

Act 2

Evening. The yard near the estate. Charlotte, Dunyasha, Yasha and Epikhodov are sitting on the bench. Charlotte says: “I don’t have a real passport, I don’t know how old I am. When I was a little girl, my father and mother went to fairs and gave performances. And I jumped salto mortale and various things. And when my father and mother died, a German lady took me in and began to teach me. I grew up, then became a governess. But where I come from and who I am, I don’t know...” Charlotte leaves.

Epikhodov plays the guitar. He says that he has a revolver, but he does not yet know whether he wants to shoot himself or wants to live. He wants to talk to Dunyasha alone. But she sends him away, stays with Yasha and says: “I was taken to the masters as a girl, I have now lost the habit of a simple life, and now my hands are white and white, like a young lady’s. She has become tender, so delicate, noble, I’m afraid of everything... It’s so scary. And if you, Yasha, deceive me, then I don’t know what will happen to my nerves... I fell passionately in love with you, you are educated, you can talk about everything.” Yasha (yawns): “Yes, sir... In my opinion, it’s like this: if a girl loves someone, then she is immoral.” Dunyasha leaves.

Lyubov Andreevna, Gaev and Lopakhin arrive. Lopakhin again offers Raevskaya to give the estate for dachas. But she still doesn't listen to him. This morning they went to a restaurant for breakfast and spent almost all their money. But it seems to her that the estate can be saved, Gaev promises her the same. Lopakhin calls him a woman and wants to leave. Lopakhin: “Excuse me, I have never met such frivolous people like you, gentlemen, such unbusinesslike, strange people. They tell you in Russian, your estate is for sale, but you definitely don’t understand.” Ranevskaya asks him to stay and help come up with something. Lopakhin understands that you won’t get any sense from them.

Lyubov Andreevna recalls her life: “I always squandered money uncontrollably, like crazy, and married a man who made only debts. My husband died from champagne - he drank terribly - and, unfortunately, I fell in love with someone else, got together, and just at that time - this was the first punishment, a blow straight to the head - right here on the river... he drowned my boy, and I went abroad so as not to see this river... I closed my eyes, ran, not remembering myself, and he followed me... mercilessly, rudely. I bought a dacha near Menton because he fell ill there, and for three years I did not know rest, day or night; the sick man has tormented me, my soul has dried up. And last year, when the dacha was sold for debts, I went to Paris, and there he robbed me, abandoned me, got in touch with someone else, I tried to poison myself... So stupid, so shameful... And suddenly I was drawn to Russia, to my homeland , to my girl... (Wipes away tears.) Lord, be merciful, forgive me my sins! (Takes a telegram out of his pocket.) Received it from Paris today... Asks for forgiveness, begs to come back... (Tears up the telegram.)

Enter Trofimov, Varya and Anya. Lopakhin makes fun of Trofimov: “He will soon be fifty years old, but he is still a student.” Trofimov is angry: “I, Ermolai Alekseich, understand this: you are a rich man, you will soon be a millionaire. Just as in terms of metabolism we need a predatory beast that eats everything that gets in its way, so we need you.” Everyone laughs. Trofimov starts a conversation about lofty matters: “Humanity moves forward, improving its strength. Everything that is inaccessible to him now will someday become close and understandable, but he must work and help with all his might those who are seeking the truth. Here, in Russia, very few people still work. The vast majority of the intelligentsia that I know does not seek anything, does nothing, and is not yet capable of work... Everyone is serious, everyone has stern faces, everyone talks only about important things, philosophizes, and yet in front of everyone the workers eat disgusting, they sleep without pillows, thirty or forty in one room, there are bedbugs everywhere, stench, dampness, moral uncleanliness...” Lopakhin: “You know, I get up at five o’clock in the morning, I work from morning to evening, well, for me I always have my own and other people’s money, and I see what kind of people are around me. You just have to start doing something to understand how few honest, decent people there are. Sometimes, when I can’t sleep, I think: “Lord, you gave us huge forests, vast fields, the deepest horizons, and living here, we ourselves should really be giants...” Gaev is trying to say something, but he is stopped. Silence. Suddenly the sound of a broken string is heard, fading, sad. Firs: “Before the disaster it was the same: the owl was screaming, and the samovar was humming uncontrollably.” Gaev: “Before what misfortune?” Firs: “Before the will.”

A tipsy passer-by approaches them and asks them to give him some money. Ranevskaya gives him a gold one. Varya cannot believe her own eyes. She reproaches her mother for being excessively wasteful, because the people in the house have nothing to eat, and she gives out alms. Everyone leaves except Trofimov and Anya. Trofimov: “Varya is afraid that we might fall in love with each other, and she doesn’t leave our side for whole days. With her narrow head, she cannot understand that we are above love. To bypass those small and illusory things that prevent us from being free and happy, this is the goal and meaning of our life. Forward! We are moving uncontrollably towards the bright star that is burning there in the distance!

Forward! Don't lag behind, friends! Anya (throwing up her hands): “How well you speak!” Anya: “What have you done to me, Petya, why I no longer love the cherry orchard as before.” Trofimov: “All of Russia is our garden. The earth is great and beautiful... Think, Anya: your grandfather, great-grandfather and all your ancestors were serf owners who owned living souls, and aren’t human beings looking at you from every cherry in the garden, from every leaf, from every trunk, are you really don’t hear voices... Owning living souls - after all, this has reborn all of you, who lived before and are now living, so that your mother, you, uncle, no longer notice that you are living in debt, at someone else’s expense... It’s so clear In order to begin to live in the present, we must first redeem our past, put an end to it, and we can redeem it only through suffering, only through extraordinary, continuous labor. Understand this, Anya.” Anya is delighted with Petya’s words. In the distance, Varya’s voice is heard calling her sister. Petya and Anya run away from her to the river.

Act 3

Living room in the estate. You can hear the orchestra playing in the hall. Evening. They are dancing in the hall. Varya says bitterly: “Well, they hired musicians, but how to pay?” Lyubov Andreevna also understands: “And the musicians came at the wrong time, and we started the ball at the wrong time...” Gaev is in the city, at the auction, and she is worried that he will be gone for a long time. The fate of the estate is unknown.

Ranevskaya talks to Varya about Lopakhin. She can't understand why they won't explain themselves to each other. Varya replies that she herself cannot propose to Lopakhin. Varya leaves. Ranevskaya asks Petya to calm her down. She is very worried, because at this moment her fate is being decided. Trofimov replies that the estate “has been finished a long time ago, the path is overgrown... There is no need to deceive yourself, you need to look the truth straight in the eye at least once in your life.” Lyubov Andreevna: “What truth? You see where the truth is and where the untruth is, but I’ve definitely lost my sight, I don’t see anything. You boldly resolve all important issues, but tell me, my dear, is it because you are young, that you have not had time to suffer through any of your questions? You boldly look forward, and is it because you don’t see or expect anything terrible, since life is still hidden from your young eyes? You are braver, more honest, deeper than us, but think about it, be generous... spare me. After all, I was born here, my father and mother, my grandfather lived here, I love this house, without the cherry orchard I don’t understand my life, and if you really need to sell, then sell me along with the orchard... (Hugs Trofimova, kisses him on the forehead.) After all, my son drowned here... (Cries.) Have pity on me, good, kind man.” Petya instead hands her a telegram. This time Lyubov Andreevna does not tear it up, she is wondering whether to go to Paris, because “this wild man” is sick again... Ranevskaya admits: “This is a stone on my neck, I am going to the bottom with it, but I love this stone and I can’t live without him.” Petya is trying to convince Ranevskaya that this man has robbed her, that he is a scoundrel, a nonentity. Petya does not understand that he is speaking tactlessly. Ranevskaya retorts: “You have to be a man, at your age you have to understand those who love. And you have to love yourself... you have to fall in love! (Angrily.) Yes, yes! And you have no purity, and you are just a clean person, a funny eccentric, a freak... You are not above love, but you are simply a klutz. At your age, don’t have a mistress!.” Petya runs away in horror from these words: “It’s all over between us!” Lyubov Andreevna shouts after him: “Petya, wait! Funny man, I was joking!

Yasha and Firs look at the dancers. Old Firs looks sick and has difficulty standing. His fate is also being decided: if the estate is sold, he has nowhere to go. “Wherever you order, I’ll go there,” he says to Ranevskaya. Yasha is indifferent to the feelings of his owners. He cares about one thing: for his hostess to take him to Paris again: “You see for yourself, the country is uneducated, the people are immoral, and, moreover, boredom, the food in the kitchen is ugly... Take me with you, be so kind!”

The fun continues in the hall: Charlotte shows tricks, Dunyasha flirts. Varya, irritated by the inappropriate holiday, finds fault with Epikhodov, drives him away from the house, swings a stick and accidentally hits Lopakhin, who has just arrived, on the head. Those around you can’t wait to find out the results of the auction. Lyubov Andreevna hurries Lopakhin and Gaev: “Speak up!” Lopakhin is confused, Gaev looks upset. Lyubov Andreevna: “Is the cherry orchard sold?” Lopakhin: “Sold.” Lyubov Andreevna: “Who bought it?” Lopakhin: “I bought it.” Lyubov Andreevna is depressed. Varya takes the keys from her belt, throws them on the floor and leaves.

Lopakhin finally broke through, he talks about the auction, rejoices, laughs: “The cherry orchard is now mine! My! Tell me that I’m drunk, out of my mind, that I’m imagining all this... (Stamps his feet.) Don’t laugh at me!.. I bought an estate where my grandfather and father were slaves, where they weren’t even allowed into the kitchen . I'm sleeping
I’m just imagining this... (Raises the keys.) She threw the keys, she wants to show that she is no longer the mistress here... Hey, musicians, play! Come and see how Ermolai Lopakhin takes an ax to the cherry orchard! We will set up dachas, and our grandchildren and great-grandchildren will see a new life here... Music, play!”

Lyubov Andreevna sank into a chair and cried bitterly. Lopakhin consoles her: “Why didn’t you listen to me? My poor, good one, you won’t get it back now. (With tears.) Oh, if only our awkward, unhappy life would somehow change...”

Ranevskaya is left alone, “shrank all over and crying bitterly.” Anya and Petya enter. Anya rushes to hug and reassure her mother: “Don’t cry, Mom, you still have a life ahead of you, your good, pure soul remains... We will plant a new garden, more luxurious than this... and you will smile, Mom! Let's go, honey! Let's go to!.."

Act 4

October. The scenery of the first act. There are no curtains on the windows, no paintings, there is only a little furniture left, which is folded in one corner, as if for sale. It feels empty. Ranevskaya and Gaev enter; she is pale, her face is trembling, she cannot speak. Lopakhin offers champagne as a farewell, but no one responds. Then Yasha gets the champagne, he does not refuse to drink, and even criticizes: “the champagne is not real.” Yasha laughs with pleasure: he is taken to Paris. There are twenty minutes left before departure.

Trofimov enters, looking for his galoshes. Lopakhin tells him that he is also leaving: “I kept hanging around with you, I was tired of doing nothing. I can’t live without work...” Trofimov is going to Moscow. Lopakhin teases: “Well, professors don’t give lectures, I guess everyone is waiting for you to arrive!.. How many years have you been studying at the university?” Trofimov sluggishly shrugs it off. He says: “You know, we probably won’t see each other again... After all, I still love you. You have thin, delicate fingers, like an artist, you have a thin, gentle soul...” Lopakhin is touched, offers him money for the journey, but Petya refuses: “I am a free man. And everything that you all value so highly and dearly, rich and poor, does not have the slightest power over me, just like fluff that floats through the air. I can do without you, I am strong and proud. Humanity is moving towards the highest truth, towards the highest happiness that is possible on earth, and I am in the forefront!” Lopakhin: “Will you get there?” Trofimov: “I’ll get there... I’ll get there or I’ll show others the way to get there.”

You can hear an ax knocking on a tree in the distance. Lopakhin says goodbye to Petya: “When I work for a long time, tirelessly, then my thoughts are lighter, and it seems as if I also know why I exist. And how many people, brother, are there in Russia who exist for no one knows why... Leonid Andreich, they say, has accepted a position, will be in the bank, six thousand a year... But he can’t sit still, he’s very lazy...”

Anya enters and conveys her mother’s request that they not cut down the garden before she leaves. Lopakhin goes to give orders. First Anya, then Varya ask if Firs was sent to the hospital. Yasha replies that “he said in the morning...”, that is, he transferred this matter to others. His mother comes to say goodbye to Yasha. Yasha is dissatisfied: “They are only being taken out of patience.” Dunyasha cries: “You are leaving, you are leaving me...” Yasha drinks champagne: “It’s not for me here, I can’t live... There’s nothing to be done. I've seen enough of ignorance - that's enough for me. Behave decently, then you won’t cry.”

Gaev and Ranevskaya enter. Lyubov Andreevna: “Goodbye, sweet home, old grandfather. Winter will pass, spring will come, and you will no longer be there, you will be broken...” Anya does not share her mother’s sadness, she is happy: “A new life begins!.. I will prepare, pass the exam at the gymnasium and then I will work...” A breathless Pishchik appears. He says that white clay was found on his estate. Now the British rented the estate from him and paid a lot of money.

Ranevskaya says that she has two worries - the sick Firs and Varya. She hears that the old man has been sent to the hospital and calms down. Lyubov Andreevna talks to Lopakhin about Varya: “I dreamed of marrying her to you...” Lopakhin is ready to propose. Ranevskaya calls Varya and leaves them alone. Varya pretends to be looking for something. Lopakhin still can’t start a conversation. Suddenly someone calls him, and he quickly leaves, as if he had been waiting for this call. Varya, sitting on the floor, quietly sobs.

Last preparations before departure. Ranevskaya and Gaev say goodbye to the house. Anya: “Goodbye, old life!” Petya picks up: “Hello, new life!” Everyone except Gaev and Ranevskaya comes out. “They were definitely waiting for this, they throw themselves on each other’s necks and sob restrainedly, quietly, afraid not to be heard.” Lyubov Andreevna: “Oh my dear, my tender beautiful garden!.. My life, my youth, my happiness, goodbye!..”

The stage is empty. You can hear all the doors being locked and the carriages driving away. In the midst of the silence, a dull knock on wood is heard, sounding lonely and sad. Footsteps are heard, Firs appears: “Locked. They left... They forgot about me... Nothing... I'll sit here... Life has passed, as if I had never lived. I’ll lie down... You don’t have strength, there’s nothing left, nothing... Eh, you... klutz!..” He lies motionless.

A distant sound is heard, as if from the sky, the sound of a broken string, fading, sad. Silence sets in, and you can only hear an ax being knocked on a tree far away in the garden.

Origins of the work

Very often the question arises: what is included in the history of the creation of Chekhov’s “The Cherry Orchard”? In order to understand this, it is necessary to remember at the turn of which eras Anton Pavlovich worked. He was born in the 19th century, society was changing, people and their worldview were changing, Russia was moving towards a new system, which developed rapidly after the abolition of serfdom. The history of the creation of the play “The Cherry Orchard” by A.P. Chekhov - the final work of his work - begins, perhaps, with the very departure of young Anton to Moscow in 1879.

From an early age, Anton Chekhov was fond of drama and, as a student at the gymnasium, tried to write in this genre, but these first attempts at writing became known only after the death of the writer. One of the plays is called "Fatherless", written around 1878. A very voluminous work, it was staged on the theater stage only in 1957. The volume of the play did not correspond to Chekhov’s style where “brevity is the sister of talent,” however, those touches that changed the entire Russian theater are already visible.

Anton Pavlovich's father had a small shop located on the first floor of the Chekhovs' house, and the family lived on the second. However, since 1894, things in the store went from bad to worse, and in 1897 the father went bankrupt completely, the whole family was forced, after selling the property, to move to Moscow, where the older children had already settled by that time. Therefore, from an early age, Anton Chekhov learned what it was like to have to part with the most precious thing - his home - to pay off his debts. Already at a more mature age, Chekhov more than once encountered cases of the sale of noble estates at auctions to “new people”, and in modern terms - to businessmen.

Originality and timeliness

The creative history of The Cherry Orchard begins in 1901, when Chekhov first wrote in a letter to his wife that he had conceived a new play, unlike those he had written before. From the very beginning, he conceived it as a kind of comedy farce, in which everything would be very frivolous, fun and carefree. The plot of the play was the sale of an old landowner's estate for debts. Chekhov had already tried to reveal this theme earlier in “Fatherlessness,” but it took him 170 pages of handwritten text, and a play of such volume could not fit into the framework of one performance. And Anton Pavlovich did not like to remember his early brainchild. Having honed his skills as a playwright to perfection, he took it up again.

The situation of selling a house was close and familiar to Chekhov, and after the sale of his father’s house in Taganrog, he was interested and excited by the mental tragedy of such cases. Thus, the basis of the play was both his own painful impressions and the story of his friend A.S. Kiselev, whose estate was also sold at auction, and he became one of the directors of the bank, and it was from him that the image of Gaev was largely copied. The writer also saw many abandoned noble estates in the Kharkov province, where he rested. The action of the play takes place, by the way, in those parts. Anton Pavlovich observed the same deplorable state of the estates and the position of their owners both on his estate in Melikhovo and as a guest at the estate of K.S. Stanislavsky. He observed what was happening and comprehended what was happening for more than 10 years.

The process of impoverishment of the nobles lasted a long time; they simply lived through their fortunes, squandering them unwisely and without thinking about the consequences. The image of Ranevskaya became collective, depicting proud, noble people who have difficulty adapting to modern life, from which the right to own human resources in the form of serfs working for the well-being of their masters has disappeared.

A play born in pain

About three years passed from the start of work on the play to its production. This was due to a number of reasons. One of the main ones was the author’s poor health, and even in letters to friends he complained that the work was progressing very slowly, sometimes it was possible to write no more than four lines a day. However, despite his poor health, he tried to write a work that was light in genre.

The second reason can be called Chekhov’s desire to fit into his play, intended for staging on stage, the whole result of thoughts about the fate of not only the ruined landowners, but also about such typical people of that era as Lopakhin, the eternal student Trofimov, in whom one senses a revolutionary-minded intellectual . Even working on the image of Yasha required enormous effort, because it was through him that Chekhov showed how the historical memory of his roots is being erased, how society and attitudes towards the Motherland as a whole are changing.

The work on the characters was carried out very meticulously. It was important for Chekhov that the actors could fully convey the idea of the play to the audience. In his letters, he described in detail the characters' characters and gave detailed comments to each scene. And he especially noted that his play is not a drama, but a comedy. However, V.I. Nemirovich-Danchenko and K.S. Stanislavsky failed to consider anything comedic in the play, which greatly upset the author. The production of The Cherry Orchard was difficult for both the directors and the playwright. After the premiere show, which took place on January 17, 1904, on Chekhov’s birthday, controversy broke out between critics, but no one remained indifferent to it.

Artistic methods and stylistics

On the one hand, the history of writing Chekhov’s comedy “The Cherry Orchard” is not so long, but on the other, Anton Pavlovich worked towards it throughout his creative life. The images have been collected for decades, and artistic techniques showing everyday life without pathos on stage have also been honed over many years. “The Cherry Orchard” became another cornerstone in the chronicle of the new theater, which began largely thanks to the talent of Chekhov, the playwright.

From the moment of the first production until today, the directors of this performance have not had a common opinion on the genre of this play. Some see the deep tragedy in what is happening, calling it a drama; some perceive the play as a tragicomedy or tragedy. But everyone is unanimous in the opinion that “The Cherry Orchard” has long become a classic not only in Russian but also in global drama.

A brief description of the history of the creation and writing of the famous play will help 10th grade students prepare notes and lessons while studying this wonderful comedy.

Work test

There are many interesting works in classical literature, the stories of which are relevant to this day.

The works written by Anton Pavlovich Chekhov fit exactly this description. In this article you can get acquainted with his play “The Cherry Orchard” in a brief summary.

The history of the creation of the play by A.P. Chekhov's "The Cherry Orchard"

The start date of the play was set in 1901, the first performance was shown 3 years later. The work reflects the unpleasant impressions of the author himself, which arose from observing the decline of many of his friends’ estates, as well as his own.

Main characters

Below is a list of the main characters:

Ranevskaya Lyubov Andreevna - owner of the estate;
Anya is her own daughter;
Gaev Leonid Andreevich - brother;
Trofimov Pyotr Sergeevich - “eternal student”;
Lopakhin Ermolai Alekseevich – buyer.

Minor characters

List of minor characters:

Varya is Anya’s half-sister;
Simeonov-Pishchik – owner of the estate;
Charlotte is a teacher;
Dunyasha - maid;
Epikhodov Semyon Panteleevich – clerk;
Firs - servant, old man;
Yasha is a servant, a young guy.

“The Cherry Orchard” - summary of actions

1 action

Events take place while waiting for Ranevskaya. Lopakhin and Dunya talk, during which an argument arises. Epikhodov comes into the room. He drops the bouquet, complaining to the others that he considers himself a failure, after which he leaves. The maid tells the merchant that Epikhodov wants to marry her.

Ranevskaya and her daughters, Gaev, Charlotte and the landowner arrive. Anya talks about her trip to France and expresses her dissatisfaction. She also wonders whether Lopakhin is going to marry Varya. To which her half-sister replies that nothing will work out, and that the estate will be put up for sale in the near future. At the same time, Dunya is flirting with a young footman.

Lopakhin announces that their estate is being sold for debt. He advocates the following solution to the problem: dividing the territory into parts and renting them out. But for this you need to cut down the cherry orchard. The landowner and her brother refuse, citing the mention of the garden in the encyclopedia. The adopted daughter brings telegrams from France to her mother, but she tears them up without reading them.

Petya Trofimov appears, the mentor of Ranevskaya’s deceased son. Gaev continues to look for options to make a profit that would help cover debts. It comes to the point of marrying Anya off to a rich man. At that time, Varya tells her sister about her problems, but the younger sister falls asleep, tired from the road.

Act 2

Events take place in a field near an old chapel. Charlotte gives a description of her life.

Epikhodov sings songs, plays the guitar, tries to show himself as a romantic in front of Dunya. She, in turn, wants to impress the young footman.

The landowners and merchant appear. He also continues to assure the owner of the land for rent. But Ranevskaya and her brother are trying to reduce the topic to “no.” The landowner begins to talk with pity about unnecessary costs.

Yakov ridicules Gaev's chant. Ranevskaya remembers her men. The last of them ruined her and exchanged her for another. After which the landowner decided to return to her homeland to her daughter. Changing the subject of Lopakhin, she starts talking about Varya’s wedding.

An old footman enters with Gaev's outer clothing. He talks about serfdom, presenting it as a misfortune. Trofimov appears, who goes into deep philosophy and speculation about the future of the country. The landowner tells her adopted daughter that she has wooed her to a merchant.

At that time, Anya secludes herself with Trofimov. He, in turn, romantically describes the situation around him. Anya turns the conversation to the topic of serfdom and says that people only talk and do nothing. After which the “eternal student” tells Anya to give up everything and become a free person.

Act 3

A ball is held in the landowner's house, which Ranevskaya considers unnecessary. Pischik is trying to find someone who will lend him money. Ranevskaya's brother went to buy the estate in his aunt's name. Ranevskaya, seeing that Lopakhin is getting richer, begins to criticize him because Varya has not yet married him. The daughter complains that he is only laughing it off.

The landowner shares with her son's former teacher that her lover is asking her to return to France. Now the owner no longer thinks about the fact that he ruined her. Trofimov tries to convince her, and she advises him to also have a woman on the side. The upset brother returns and begins a monologue about the fact that the estate was bought by Lopakhin.

The merchant boastfully tells everyone that he bought an estate and is ready to cut down the cherry orchard so that his family will continue to live in the place where his serf father and grandfather worked. Her own daughter consoles her crying mother, convincing her that her whole life lies ahead.

Act 4

Former residents leave the house. Lopakhin, tired of idleness, is going to leave for Kharkov.

He offers Trofimov money, but he does not accept it, reasoning that soon people will reach an understanding of the truth. Gaev became a bank employee.

Ranevskaya worries about the old footman, fearing that he will not be sent for treatment.

Lopakhin and Varya are left alone. The heroine says that she became a housekeeper. The merchant still did not ask her to marry him. Anya says goodbye to her mother. Ranevskaya plans to return to France. Anya plans to go to school and help her mother in the future. Gaev feels abandoned.

Suddenly Pishchik arrives and gives everyone the borrowed money. He recently became rich: white clay was found on his land, which he now rents out. The landowners say goodbye to the garden. Then they lock the doors. An ill Firs appears. In the silence the sound of an ax is heard.

Analysis of the work and conclusion

First of all, the style of this genre is observed in the bright contrast of the images of two heroes: Lopakhin and Ranevskaya. He is enterprising, seeks profit, but she is frivolous and frivolous. There are also funny situations. For example, Charlotte’s performances, Gaev’s communication with the closet, etc.

Reading this book in the original, by chapters and actions, and not in abbreviation, the question immediately arises: what does the cherry orchard mean for the heroes of the play? For landowners, the garden is a whole story of the past, while for Lopakhin it is the place on which his future will be built.

The problem of contrasting relationships at the turn of two centuries is raised in the work. There is also the question of the legacy of serfdom and the attitude of different sectors of society to the consequences. The question is raised about how the future of the country will be built using the example of the local situation. The question is raised that many are ready to reason and advise, but only a few are able to act.

Anton Pavlovich Chekhov noticed a lot of what was relevant at that time and remains important now, so everyone should read this lyrical play. This work was the last in the writer’s work.