Anton Pavlovich Chekhov.

The estate of landowner Lyubov Andreevna Ranevskaya. Spring, cherry trees are blooming. But the beautiful garden will soon have to be sold for debts. For the last five years, Ranevskaya and her seventeen-year-old daughter Anya have lived abroad. Ranevskaya’s brother Leonid Andreevich Gaev and her adopted daughter, twenty-four-year-old Varya, remained on the estate. Things are bad for Ranevskaya, there are almost no funds left. Lyubov Andreevna always squandered money. Six years ago, her husband died from drunkenness. Ranevskaya fell in love with another person and got along with him. But soon her little son Grisha died tragically, drowning in the river. Lyubov Andreevna, unable to bear the grief, fled abroad. The lover followed her. When he fell ill, Ranevskaya had to settle him at her dacha near Menton and look after him for three years. And then, when he had to sell his dacha for debts and move to Paris, he robbed and abandoned Ranevskaya.

Gaev and Varya meet Lyubov Andreevna and Anya at the station. The maid Dunyasha and the merchant Ermolai Alekseevich Lopakhin are waiting for them at home. Lopakhin's father was a serf of the Ranevskys, he himself became rich, but says of himself that he remained a “man a man.” The clerk Epikhodov comes, a man with whom something constantly happens and who is nicknamed “thirty-three misfortunes.”

Finally the carriages arrive. The house is filled with people, everyone is in pleasant excitement. Everyone talks about their own things. Lyubov Andreevna looks at the rooms and through tears of joy remembers the past. The maid Dunyasha can’t wait to tell the young lady that Epikhodov proposed to her. Anya herself advises Varya to marry Lopakhin, and Varya dreams of marrying Anya to a rich man. The governess Charlotte Ivanovna, a strange and eccentric person, boasts about her amazing dog; the neighbor, the landowner Simeonov-Pishik, asks for a loan of money. The old faithful servant Firs hears almost nothing and mutters something all the time.

Lopakhin reminds Ranevskaya that the estate should soon be sold at auction, the only way out is to divide the land into plots and rent them out to summer residents. Ranevskaya is surprised by Lopakhin’s proposal: how can her beloved wonderful cherry orchard be cut down!

Lopakhin wants to stay longer with Ranevskaya, whom he loves “more than his own,” but it’s time for him to leave. Gaev makes a welcoming speech to the hundred-year-old “respected” cabinet, but then, embarrassed, he again begins to meaninglessly utter his favorite billiard words.

Ranevskaya does not immediately recognize Petya Trofimov: so he has changed, turned ugly, the “dear student” has turned into an “eternal student.” Lyubov Andreevna cries, remembering her little drowned son Grisha, whose teacher was Trofimov.

Gaev, left alone with Varya, tries to talk about business. There is a rich aunt in Yaroslavl, who, however, does not love them: after all, Lyubov Andreevna did not marry a nobleman, and she did not behave “very virtuously.” Gaev loves his sister, but still calls her “vicious,” which displeases Anya. Gaev continues to build projects: his sister will ask Lopakhin for money, Anya will go to Yaroslavl - in a word, they will not allow the estate to be sold, Gaev even swears by it. The grumpy Firs finally takes the master, like a child, to bed. Anya is calm and happy: her uncle will arrange everything.

Lopakhin never ceases to persuade Ranevskaya and Gaev to accept his plan. The three of them had breakfast in the city and, on their way back, stopped in a field near the chapel. Just now, here, on the same bench, Epikhodov tried to explain himself to Dunyasha, but she had already preferred the young cynical lackey Yasha to him. Ranevskaya and Gaev don’t seem to hear Lopakhin and are talking about completely different things. Without convincing the “frivolous, unbusinesslike, strange” people of anything, Lopakhin wants to leave. Ranevskaya asks him to stay: “it’s still more fun” with him.

Anya, Varya and Petya Trofimov arrive. Ranevskaya starts a conversation about a “proud man.” According to Trofimov, there is no point in pride: a rude, unhappy person should not admire himself, but work. Petya condemns the intelligentsia, who are incapable of work, those people who philosophize importantly, and treat men like animals. Lopakhin enters the conversation: he works “from morning to evening,” dealing with large capitals, but he is increasingly convinced how few decent people there are around. Lopakhin doesn’t finish speaking, Ranevskaya interrupts him. In general, everyone here does not want and does not know how to listen to each other. There is silence, in which the distant sad sound of a broken string can be heard.

Soon everyone disperses. Left alone, Anya and Trofimov are glad to have the opportunity to talk together, without Varya. Trofimov convinces Anya that one must be “above love”, that the main thing is freedom: “all of Russia is our garden,” but in order to live in the present, one must first atone for the past through suffering and labor. Happiness is close: if not they, then others will definitely see it.

The twenty-second of August arrives, trading day. It was on this evening, completely inopportunely, that a ball was being held at the estate, and a Jewish orchestra was invited. Once upon a time, generals and barons danced here, but now, as Firs complains, both the postal official and the station master “don’t like to go.” Charlotte Ivanovna entertains guests with her tricks. Ranevskaya anxiously awaits her brother's return. The Yaroslavl aunt nevertheless sent fifteen thousand, but it was not enough to redeem the estate.

Petya Trofimov “calms” Ranevskaya: it’s not about the garden, it’s over long ago, we need to face the truth. Lyubov Andreevna asks not to judge her, to have pity: after all, without the cherry orchard, her life loses its meaning. Every day Ranevskaya receives telegrams from Paris. At first she tore them right away, then - after reading them first, now she no longer tears them. "This wild man", whom she still loves, begs her to come. Petya condemns Ranevskaya for her love for “a petty scoundrel, a nonentity.” Angry Ranevskaya, unable to restrain herself, takes revenge on Trofimov, calling him a “funny eccentric”, “freak”, “clean”: “You have to love yourself... you have to fall in love!” Petya tries to leave in horror, but then stays and dances with Ranevskaya, who asked him for forgiveness.

Finally, a confused, joyful Lopakhin and a tired Gaev appear, who, without saying anything, immediately goes home. The Cherry Orchard sold, and Lopakhin bought it. The “new landowner” is happy: he managed to outbid the rich man Deriganov at the auction, giving ninety thousand on top of his debt. Lopakhin picks up the keys thrown on the floor by the proud Varya. Let the music play, let everyone see how Ermolai Lopakhin “takes an ax to the cherry orchard”!

Anya consoles her crying mother: the garden has been sold, but there is a whole life ahead. Will new garden, more luxurious than this, “quiet, deep joy” awaits them...
The house is empty. Its inhabitants, having said goodbye to each other, leave. Lopakhin is going to Kharkov for the winter, Trofimov is returning to Moscow, to the university. Lopakhin and Petya exchange barbs. Although Trofimov calls Lopakhin “ a beast of prey", necessary "in the sense of metabolism", he still loves the "tender, subtle soul" in him. Lopakhin offers Trofimov money for the trip. He refuses: over " a free man", "in the forefront of moving" to the "highest happiness", no one should have power.

Ranevskaya and Gaev even became happier after selling the cherry orchard. Previously they were worried and suffered, but now they have calmed down. Ranevskaya is going to live in Paris for now with money sent by her aunt. Anya is inspired: it’s starting new life- She will graduate from high school, will work, read books, and a “new wonderful world” will open before her. Suddenly, out of breath, Simeonov-Pishchik appears and instead of asking for money, on the contrary, he gives away debts. It turned out that the British found white clay on his land.

Everyone settled down differently. Gaev says that now he is a bank employee. Lopakhin promises to find a new place for Charlotte, Varya got a job as a housekeeper for the Ragulins, Epikhodov, hired by Lopakhin, remains on the estate, Firs should be sent to the hospital. But still Gaev sadly says: “Everyone is abandoning us... we suddenly became unnecessary.”

There must finally be an explanation between Varya and Lopakhin. Varya has been teased as “Madame Lopakhina” for a long time. Varya likes Ermolai Alekseevich, but she herself cannot propose. Lopakhin, who also speaks highly of Varya, agrees to “end this matter right away.” But when Ranevskaya arranges their meeting, Lopakhin, having never made up his mind, leaves Varya, taking advantage of the first pretext.

“It's time to go! On the road! - With these words they leave the house, locking all the doors. All that remains is old Firs, whom everyone seemed to care about, but whom they forgot to send to the hospital. Firs, sighing that Leonid Andreevich went in a coat and not a fur coat, lies down to rest and lies motionless. The same sound of a broken string is heard. “Silence falls, and you can only hear how far away in the garden an ax is knocking on a tree.”

Material provided by the internet portal briefly.ru, compiled by E. V. Novikova

The history of the creation of the play “The Cherry Orchard”

“The Cherry Orchard” is Chekhov’s last play, completed on the threshold of the first Russian revolution, in the year of his early death.

For the first time about the idea of ​​writing this play A.P. Chekhov mentions it in one of his letters in the spring of 1901. It was conceived by him as a comedy, “like a funny play, where the devil would walk with a yoke.” In 1903, in the midst of work on The Cherry Orchard, A.P. Chekhov wrote to his friends: “The whole play is cheerful and frivolous.” Its theme - “the estate goes under the hammer” - was not new for Chekhov; it was touched upon by him in his early drama “Fatherlessness” (1878-1881). The situation of the sale of the estate and the loss of the house interested and worried the writer throughout creative path.

The play “The Cherry Orchard” reflected many of A.P.’s life experiences. Chekhov. These include memories of the sale of their home in Taganrog, and acquaintance with the Kiselevs - the owners of the Babkino estate, near Moscow, where the Chekhovs lived in the summer months of 1885-1887. A.S. Kiselev, who, after selling his estate for debts, entered service as a member of the board of a bank in Kaluga, was in many ways the prototype of Gaev. In 1888 and 1889, Chekhov vacationed on the Lintvarev estate, near Sumy, Kharkov province, where he saw many neglected and dying noble estates. The writer could observe the same picture in detail in 1892-1898, living in his Melikhovo, and in the summer of 1902, when he was visiting the estate of K.S. Stanislavsky - Lyubimovka near Moscow. The bankrupt nobility, who thoughtlessly lived their fortunes, was gradually forced out of the estates by the increasingly stronger “third estate.” All these years, in the minds of the writer, the process of maturation of the idea of ​​the play was going on, which would reflect many details of the life of the inhabitants of the old noble nests.

Work on the play “The Cherry Orchard” required A.P. Chekhov great efforts. “I write four lines a day, and those with unbearable pain,” he told his friends. However, overcoming illness and everyday disorder, Chekhov wrote a “cheerful play.”

The importance of Chekhov's letters to directors and actors, in which he comments on individual scenes of The Cherry Orchard, gives characteristics of its characters, especially emphasizing the comedic specificity of his creation, is invaluable. But the founders of the Art Theater K.S. Stanislavsky and Vl.I. Nemirovich-Danchenko, highly appreciating the play, perceived it as a drama. The reading of the play by the troupe was a “brilliant success.” According to Stanislavsky, it was greeted with “unanimous enthusiasm.” “I cried like a woman,” he wrote to Chekhov, “I wanted to, but I couldn’t help myself. I hear you say: “Excuse me, but this is a farce.” No, for common man this is a tragedy. I feel special tenderness and love for this play.”

It was obvious that the play required special theatrical language, new intonations, and both its creator and the actors clearly understood this. M.P. Lilina (the first performer of the role of Anya) wrote to Chekhov on November 11, 1903: “... It seemed to me that The Cherry Orchard is not a play, but musical composition, symphony. And this play must be played especially truthfully, but without real rudeness.” chekhov noble dream loss

The director's interpretation of The Cherry Orchard did not satisfy Chekhov in every way. “This is a tragedy, no matter what the outcome better life You didn’t open anything in the last act,” Stanislavsky wrote to Chekhov, affirming his logic of the play’s movement towards a tragic ending, which essentially meant the end of his former life, the loss of his home and the disappearance of the garden. In his vision, the performance was devoid of comedic intonations, which endlessly outraged Chekhov. In his opinion, Stanislavsky (performer of the role of Gaev) delayed the action in the fourth act. “How terrible this is! - Chekhov wrote to his wife. - An act that should last 12 minutes maximum, you have 40 minutes. Stanislavsky ruined the play for me.”

In turn, Stanislavsky complained in December 1903: “The Cherry Orchard” “is not blooming yet. Flowers had just appeared, the author arrived and confused us all. The flowers have fallen, and now only new buds are appearing.”

And yet, despite the inevitable rehearsal difficulties, the performance was prepared for release. The premiere took place on Chekhov's birthday - January 17, 1904. For the first time, the Art Theater honored its beloved writer and author of the plays of many of the group’s productions, timed to coincide with the 25th anniversary literary activity Chekhov. The appearance of the hero of the day on the proscenium after the third act caused thunderous applause. All artistic and literary Moscow gathered in the hall. Among the spectators were A. Bely, V. Bryusov,

M. Gorky, S. Rachmaninov, F. Chaliapin. Chekhov's last play - his poetic testament - began its independent life.

The interest of the Russian public in the play was enormous. The bright spirit of Chekhov's work captivated the audience. Productions of “The Cherry Orchard” were successfully performed in many theaters across the country. However, the writer was not destined to see a performance that would meet his creative plans. As Stanislavsky later admitted, Chekhov overtook the development of theater. But, he wrote, “the chapter about Chekhov is not over yet.” And today we are convinced of this.

English: Wikipedia is making the site more secure. You are using an old web browser that will not be able to connect to Wikipedia in the future. Please update your device or contact your IT administrator.

中文: The以下提供更长，更具技术性的更新（仅英语 ）。

Spanish: Wikipedia está haciendo el sitio más seguro. Usted está utilizando un navegador web viejo que no será capaz de conectarse a Wikipedia en el futuro. Actualice su dispositivo o contacte a su administrador informático. Más abajo hay una actualización más larga y más técnica en inglés.

ﺎﻠﻋﺮﺒﻳﺓ: ويكيبيديا تسعى لتأمين الموقع أكثر من ذي قبل. أنت تستخدم متصفح وب قديم لن يتمكن من الاتصال بموقع ويكيبيديا في المستقبل. يرجى تحديث جهازك أو الاتصال بغداري تقنية المعلومات الخاص بك. يوجد تحديث فني أطول ومغرق في التقنية باللغة الإنجليزية تاليا.

Français: Wikipédia va bientôt augmenter la securité de son site. Vous utilisez actuellement un navigateur web ancien, qui ne pourra plus se connecter à Wikipédia lorsque ce sera fait. Merci de mettre à jour votre appareil ou de contacter votre administrateur informatique à cette fin. Des informations supplémentaires plus techniques et en anglais sont disponibles ci-dessous.

日本語: ? ???す るか 情報は以下に英語で提供しています。

German: Wikipedia erhöht die Sicherheit der Webseite. Du benutzt einen alten Webbrowser, der in Zukunft nicht mehr auf Wikipedia zugreifen können wird. Bitte aktualisiere dein Gerät oder sprich deinen IT-Administrator an. Ausführlichere (und technisch detailliertere) Hinweise findest Du unten in englischer Sprache.

Italiano: Wikipedia sta rendendo il sito più sicuro. Stay usando un browser web che non sarà in grado di connettersi a Wikipedia in futuro. Per favore, aggiorna il tuo dispositivo o contatta il tuo amministratore informatico. Più in basso è disponibile un aggiornamento più dettagliato e tecnico in inglese.

Magyar: Biztonságosabb lesz a Wikipédia. A böngésző, amit használsz, nem lesz képes kapcsolódni a jövőben. Használj modernebb szoftvert vagy jelezd a problémát a rendszergazdádnak. Alább olvashatod a részletesebb magyarázatot (angolul).

Svenska: Wikipedia gör sidan mer säker. Du använder en äldre webbläsare som inte kommer att kunna läsa Wikipedia i framtiden. Uppdatera din enhet eller kontakta din IT-administratör. Det finns en längre och mer teknisk förklaring på engelska längre ned.

हिन्दी: विकिपीडिया साइट को और अधिक सुरक्षित बना रहा है। आप एक पुराने वेब ब्राउज़र का उपयोग कर रहे हैं जो भविष्य में विकिपीडिया से कनेक्ट नहीं हो पाएगा। कृपया अपना डिवाइस अपडेट करें या अपने आईटी व्यवस्थापक से संपर्क करें। नीचे अंग्रेजी में एक लंबा और अधिक तकनीकी अद्यतन है।

We are removing support for insecure TLS protocol versions, specifically TLSv1.0 and TLSv1.1, which your browser software relies on to connect to our sites. This is usually caused by outdated browsers, or older Android smartphones. Or it could be interference from corporate or personal "Web Security" software, which actually downgrades connection security.

You must upgrade your web browser or otherwise fix this issue to access our sites. This message will remain until Jan 1, 2020. After that date, your browser will not be able to establish a connection to our servers.

The great Russian writer Anton Pavlovich Chekhov is the author of unforgettable literary masterpieces. Such works for the stage as “The Seagull”, “Three Sisters”, and the play “The Cherry Orchard” have been included in the repertoires of theaters around the world for more than a hundred years and enjoy constant success with the public. However, it is not possible to convey authentic characters in every foreign theater. The play "The Cherry Orchard" is Chekhov's last work. The writer was going to continue his work in the field theatrical arts, but illness got in the way.

"The Cherry Orchard", the history of the play

The dramaturgy of Russian theatrical art of the late 19th century was distinguished by the dedication of its authors. The writer worked fruitfully until last day. He died in 1886, at the age of 63, from nervous exhaustion. Anton Pavlovich Chekhov, already terminally ill, worked without leaving his office, creating his unique masterpieces. Feelings, heightened by illness, increased the artistic level of the works.

The play “The Cherry Orchard” by the great Russian playwright Anton Pavlovich Chekhov, whose creation story is connected with an unfavorable period in the writer’s life, was published in 1903. Before this, the drama “Three Sisters” was played on the stage of the capital’s Art Theater, which was an unprecedented success. Then Chekhov decided to start working on the next play. In a letter to his wife, actress Olga Leonardovna Knipper, he wrote: “... but the next play I write will certainly be funny...”.

Not fun at all

Could the writer’s last play, which he created before his death, become “funny”? Unlikely, but sad - yes. The drama “The Cherry Orchard,” the history of which is no less tragic than the play itself, became the quintessence of the entire short life of the great playwright. The characters in the work are written with high artistic authenticity, and the events, although they unfold in a somewhat unexpected direction, do not contain any particular intrigue. Approximately from the middle of the performance, a fatal inevitability is felt.

Lyubov Andreevna Ranevskaya

The story of the ruin of an elderly landowner's estate evokes ambivalent feelings. The relative well-being of Lyubov Andreevna Ranevskaya is beyond doubt, although this impression is only indirectly reinforced. Her estate is being sold for debts, but the possibility of returning to Paris remains. Ranevskaya is parting with the cherry orchard, which is part of her life, but at the same time, the future of the elderly heroine looks hopeful. The writer did not transfer the episode of the acquisition of the estate by the merchant Lopakhin and the subsequent one into the category of tragic hopelessness. Although, of course, the sound of an ax cutting down trees is a blow to the fate of Ranevskaya and her relatives.

The play “The Cherry Orchard,” the history of which reflects Anton Pavlovich Chekhov’s desire to show the costs of that time as deeply as possible, reveals the ruin and neglect of landowners’ estates. The dying noble estates, behind which stood the broken destinies of people, were shown by the writer with frightening frankness. The tragedy of the events occurring in the lives of the inhabitants of the noble nests is part of the Russian reality of that time, gloomy and unpredictable.

The result of my entire creative life

The play, which the writer took from life, is the last work of playwright Chekhov. Its plot is somewhat intertwined with the life of the writer himself. At one time, Anton Pavlovich’s family was forced to sell their house in Taganrog. And the playwright’s acquaintance with the landowner A.S. Kiselev, the owner of the Babkino estate, located near Moscow, made it possible to better understand the problems of the impoverished nobles. Kiselev's estate was sold for debts, and the former landowner entered service in one of the banks of Kaluga. Thus, Kiselev became the prototype of the character Gaev. The remaining images in the play "The Cherry Orchard" were also taken from life. The characters in the work in question can be found anywhere. These are ordinary ordinary people.

Creativity and illness

The play “The Cherry Orchard,” the story of which is connected with painful illness and overcoming an illness, was written in a few months. The premiere took place on January 17, 1904, on the birthday of Anton Pavlovich Chekhov. The Moscow Art Theater honored its author. The seriously ill writer found strength and arrived at the premiere. No one expected to see Chekhov in the theater, the audience gave him a standing ovation, and the entire artistic and literary city of Moscow gathered in the hall. Rachmaninov and Chaliapin, Gorky and Bryusov - the entire elite of Moscow's creative elite honored Chekhov with their presence.

The play "The Cherry Orchard", heroes and characters

Characters theatrical production 1904:

• The main character is the landowner Lyubov Andreevna Ranevskaya.
• Her daughter Anya, 17 years old.
• Ranevskaya's brother is Leonid Andreevich Gaev.
• Adopted daughter of Lyubov Andreevna Varya, 24 years old.
• Student - Trofimov Petr.
• Landowner, neighbor - Boris Borisovich Pishchik.
• Merchant - Ermolai Alekseevich Lopakhin.
• Governess - Charlotte Ivanovna.
• Clerk - Epikhodov Semyon Panteleevich.
• Maid - Dunyasha.
• Old footman - Firs.
• The young footman is Yasha.
• Postal official.
• Passerby.
• Servant.
• Guests.

The play "The Cherry Orchard" - Chekhov's masterpiece - was created in the last year of the writer's life, and therefore can rightfully be considered the great playwright's farewell address to people.

Chekhov's immortal play "The Cherry Orchard" became a worthy conclusion to the creative path of the writer and playwright. Here is its summary.

The estate of landowner Ranevskaya with a magnificent cherry orchard must be sold for debts. Lyubov Andreevna herself has been living abroad for the last five years with her seventeen-year-old daughter Anya. Ranevskaya's brother (Leonid Andreevich Gaev) and Varya (Lyubov Andreevna's adopted daughter) still live on an estate that can no longer be saved. Things are going very badly for Ranevskaya - six years have passed since her husband died. Then my little son died (drowned in the river). It was then that Lyubov Andreevna went abroad to somehow forget. She took a lover, whom she later had to look after due to his illness.

Homecoming

And now, on the eve of the auction, the owner of the estate returns home with her daughter Anya. At the station, the travelers are met by Leonid Andreevich and Varya. An old acquaintance, the merchant Lopakhin and the maid Dunyasha are waiting for them at home. Later, clerk Epikhodov comes to report.

Carriages arrive at the estate, the meeting is joyful, but everyone talks only about their own things. Lyubov Andreevna herself walks around the rooms in tears, remembers past years and listens to the news as she goes. Dunyasha shares with the lady her joy that Epikhodov proposed to her.

Lyubov Andreevna stops to take a breath, and then Lopakhin reminds her that the estate is about to be sold, but it can still be saved if the garden is cut down and the land is distributed in parts for rent to summer residents. The idea is quite sound, except for Ranevskaya’s deep nostalgia for the past. Lopakhin's proposal terrifies her - how can you destroy the cherry orchard, because her whole past life is in it!

Family friend Lopakhin

Disappointed, Lopakhin leaves, and Petya Trofimov appears in his place - the “eternal student,” a pimply young man who was once the teacher of Ranevskaya’s son. He wanders around the living room without any purpose. Gaev, left alone with Varya, begins to make plans on how to save the estate from ruin. He remembers an aunt in Yaroslavl, about whom no one has heard anything for the last fifteen years, but at the same time everyone knows that she is very rich. Leonid Andreevich offers to write her a letter with a bow.

Lopakhin returned. He again began to persuade Ranevskaya and her brother to rent out the estate, although they did not listen to him. Desperate to convince these “strange, unbusinesslike, frivolous” people of something, Lopakhin is going to take his leave. Lyubov Andreevna asks him to stay, because “it’s more fun with him.” Petya captured everyone's attention and began to vilify the intelligentsia, who love to philosophize and treat people like cattle. Lopakhin manages to squeeze in a few words about how few decent people there are around. Then Ranevskaya interrupts him and reminds him that bidding day is coming soon.

The sound of an ax is like the finale of a lifetime

August 22 arrives - the day on which the auction is scheduled. The night before, a ball is held at the estate, musicians are invited, and refreshments are ordered. But no one came except the postal official and the station master, and yet once upon a time generals and nobles danced on the parquet floor of the living room.

Ranevskaya talks with Petya Trofimov and admits to him that her life will lose meaning if there is no cherry orchard. Then she shares her secret with the teacher: it turns out that every day she receives telegrams from Paris from her former lover, in which he tearfully begs her to return. As they say, every cloud has a silver lining. Petya condemns her for indulging “a nonentity, a petty scoundrel.” Ranevskaya gets angry and calls Petya “an eccentric, a neat guy and a bore.” They are arguing.

Lopakhin and Gaev arrive and announce that the estate has been sold and that Lopakhin bought it. The merchant is happy, because he managed to beat Deriganov himself at the auction, beating him by as much as ninety thousand rubles. And now Ermolai Lopakhin will be able to cut down the cherry orchard, divide the land into plots and rent them out to summer residents. The sound of an ax is heard.

Ruin of landowners' estates

“The Cherry Orchard,” the theme of which was so topical at the end of the 19th century, is distinguished by its most realistic depiction of events. The nobles lived in grand style, constantly borrowed money, and the collateral for the loan was always an estate. And it is quite natural that it then went under the hammer. Lyubov Andreevna Ranevskaya's cherry orchard was cut down by walking through her soul with an ax. And other landowners, having gone bankrupt, committed suicide, and this happened quite often.

The characteristics of “The Cherry Orchard” as a public theatrical play can be reduced to a short formulation: cherry orchards as the meaning of someone’s life are vulnerable and doomed to death in the conditions of high society and landowners’ debt notes.

“The Cherry Orchard” is a social play by A.P. Chekhov about the death and degeneration of the Russian nobility. It was written by Anton Pavlovich in last years life. Many critics say that it is this drama that expresses the writer’s attitude towards the past, present and future of Russia.

Initially, the author planned to create a light-hearted and funny play, where the main driving force The action will involve selling the estate under the hammer. In 1901, in a letter to his wife, he shared his ideas. Previously, he had already raised a similar topic in the drama “Fatherlessness,” but he considered that experience unsuccessful. Chekhov wanted to experiment, and not resurrect stories buried in his desk. The process of impoverishment and degeneration of the nobles passed before his eyes, and he watched, creating and accumulating vital material to create artistic truth.

The history of the creation of “The Cherry Orchard” began in Taganrog, when the writer’s father was forced to sell the family nest for debts. Apparently, Anton Pavlovich experienced something similar to Ranevskaya’s feelings, which is why he so subtly delved into the experiences of seemingly fictional characters. In addition, Chekhov was personally familiar with Gaev’s prototype - A.S. Kiselev, who also sacrificed his estate in order to correct the shaky financial situation. His situation is one of hundreds. The entire Kharkov province, where the writer visited more than once, became shallow: the nests of the nobility disappeared. Such a large-scale and ambiguous process attracted the attention of the playwright: on the one hand, the peasants were liberated and received the long-awaited freedom, on the other, this reform did not increase anyone’s well-being. Such obvious tragedy could not be ignored; the light comedy conceived by Chekhov did not work out.

Meaning of the name

Since the cherry orchard symbolizes Russia, we can conclude that the author dedicated the work to the question of its fate, as Gogol wrote “ Dead Souls”for the sake of the question “Where is the bird-three flying?” In fact, we're talking about not about selling the estate, but about what will happen to the country? Will they sell it off, will they cut it down for profit? Chekhov, analyzing the situation, understood that the degeneration of the nobility, the supporting class for the monarchy, promised troubles for Russia. If these people, called by their origin to be the core of the state, cannot take responsibility for their actions, then the country will sink. Such gloomy thoughts awaited the author at back side the topic he touched on. It turned out that his heroes were not laughing, and neither was he.

The symbolic meaning of the title of the play “The Cherry Orchard” is to convey to the reader the idea of ​​the work - the search for answers to questions about the fate of Russia. Without this sign, we would perceive the comedy as a family drama, a drama from private life, or a parable about the problem of fathers and children. That is, an erroneous, narrow interpretation of what was written would not allow the reader even a hundred years later to understand the main thing: we are all responsible for our garden, regardless of generation, beliefs and social status.

Why did Chekhov call the play “The Cherry Orchard” a comedy?

Many researchers actually classify it as a comedy, since along with tragic events (the destruction of an entire class), comic scenes constantly occur in the play. That is, it cannot be unambiguously classified as a comedy; it would be more correct to classify “The Cherry Orchard” as a tragifarce or tragicomedy, since many researchers attribute Chekhov’s dramaturgy to a new phenomenon in the theater of the 20th century - antidrama. The author himself stood at the origins of this trend, so he did not call himself that. However, the innovation of his work spoke for itself. This writer has now been recognized and brought into school curriculum, and then many of his works remained misunderstood, as they were out of the general rut.

The genre of “The Cherry Orchard” is difficult to determine, because now, given the dramatic revolutionary events that Chekhov did not see, we can say that this play is a tragedy. An entire era dies in it, and hopes for revival are so weak and vague that it’s somehow impossible to even smile in the finale. An open ending, a closed curtain, and only a dull knock on wood is heard in my thoughts. This is the impression of the performance.

main idea

The ideological and thematic meaning of the play “The Cherry Orchard” is that Russia finds itself at a crossroads: it can choose the path to the past, present and future. Chekhov shows the mistakes and inconsistency of the past, the vices and predatory grip of the present, but he still hopes for a happy future, showing exalted and at the same time independent representatives of the new generation. The past, no matter how beautiful it may be, cannot be returned; the present is too imperfect and wretched to accept it, so we must invest every effort in ensuring that the future lives up to bright expectations. To achieve this, everyone must try now, without delay.

The author shows how important action is, but not the mechanical pursuit of profit, but spiritual, meaningful, moral action. It’s him that Pyotr Trofimov is talking about, it’s him that Anechka wants to see. However, we also see in the student the harmful legacy of past years - he talks a lot, but has done little for his 27 years. And yet the writer hopes that this age-old slumber will be overcome on a clear and cool morning - tomorrow, where the educated, but at the same time active descendants of the Lopakhins and Ranevskys will come.

Theme of the work

1. The author used an image that is familiar to each of us and understandable to everyone. Cherry orchards many still have them to this day, and then they were an indispensable attribute of every estate. They bloom in May, beautifully and fragrantly defend the week allotted to them, and then quickly fall off. Just as beautifully and suddenly, the nobility, once the support Russian Empire, mired in debt and endless controversy. As a matter of fact, these people were unable to live up to the expectations placed on them. Many of them, with their irresponsible attitude to life, only undermined the foundations of Russian statehood. What should have been a centuries-old oak forest was just a cherry orchard: beautiful, but quickly disappearing. The cherry fruits, alas, were not worth the space they occupied. This is how the theme of the death of noble nests was revealed in the play “The Cherry Orchard”.
2. The themes of the past, present and future are realized in the work thanks to a multi-level system of images. Each generation symbolizes the time allotted to it. In the images of Ranevskaya and Gaev, the past dies away, in the image of Lopakhin the present rules, and the future awaits its day in the images of Anya and Peter. The natural course of events takes on a human face, the change of generations is shown in specific examples.
3. The theme of time also plays an important role. Its power turns out to be destructive. Water wears away a stone - so time erases human laws, destinies and beliefs into powder. Until recently, Ranevskaya could not even imagine that her former serf would settle in the estate and cut down the garden that had been passed on by the Gaevs from generation to generation. This unshakable order of social structure collapsed and sank into oblivion, in its place capital and its market laws were installed, in which power was ensured by money, and not by position and origin.

Issues

1. The problem of human happiness in the play “The Cherry Orchard” is manifested in all the fates of the heroes. Ranevskaya, for example, experienced many troubles in this garden, but is happy to return here again. She fills the house with her warmth, remembers her native lands, and feels nostalgic. She doesn’t care at all about debts, the sale of her estate, or her daughter’s inheritance, in the end. She is happy with forgotten and relived impressions. But the house is sold, the bills are paid off, and happiness is in no hurry with the arrival of a new life. Lopakhin tells her about calm, but only anxiety grows in her soul. Instead of liberation comes depression. Thus, what is happiness for one is misfortune for another, all people understand its essence differently, which is why it is so difficult for them to get along together and help each other.
2. The problem of preserving memory also worries Chekhov. The people of the present are mercilessly cutting down what was the pride of the province. Noble nests, historically important buildings, perish from inattention, erased into oblivion. Of course, active businessmen will always find arguments to destroy unprofitable junk, but this is how historical monuments, cultural and artistic monuments will perish ingloriously, which the Lopakhins’ children will regret. They will be deprived of connections with the past, continuity of generations, and will grow up as Ivans who do not remember their kinship.
3. The problem of ecology in the play does not go unnoticed. The author asserts not only the historical value of the cherry orchard, but also its natural beauty and its importance for the province. All the residents of the surrounding villages breathed in these trees, and their disappearance is a small environmental disaster. The area will be orphaned, the gaping lands will become impoverished, but people will fill every patch of inhospitable space. The attitude towards nature must be as careful as towards humans, otherwise we will all be left without the home that we love so much.
4. The problem of fathers and children is embodied in the relationship between Ranevskaya and Anechka. The alienation between relatives is visible. The girl feels sorry for her unlucky mother, but does not want to share her lifestyle. Lyubov Andreevna pampers the child with tender nicknames, but cannot understand that in front of her is no longer a child. The woman continues to pretend that she still doesn’t understand anything, so she shamelessly builds her personal life to the detriment of her interests. They are very different, so they make no attempt to find a common language.
5. The problem of love for the homeland, or rather, its absence, can also be seen in the work. Gaev, for example, is indifferent to the garden, he only cares about his own comfort. His interests do not rise above consumer interests, so the fate of his father’s house does not bother him. Lopakhin, his opposite, also does not understand Ranevskaya’s scrupulousness. However, he also does not understand what to do with the garden. He is guided only by mercantile considerations; profits and calculations are important to him, but not the safety of his home. He clearly expresses only his love for money and the process of obtaining it. A generation of children dreams of a new kindergarten; they have no use for the old one. This is also where the problem of indifference comes into play. Nobody needs the Cherry Orchard except Ranevskaya, and even she needs memories and the old way of life, where she could do nothing and live happily. Her indifference to people and things is expressed in the scene where she calmly drinks coffee while listening to the news of her nanny's death.
6. The problem of loneliness torments every hero. Ranevskaya was abandoned and deceived by her lover, Lopakhin cannot establish relations with Varya, Gaev is an egoist by nature, Peter and Anna are just beginning to get closer, and it is already obvious that they are lost in a world where there is no one to give them a helping hand.
7. The problem of mercy haunts Ranevskaya: no one can support her, all the men not only do not help, but do not spare her. Her husband drank himself to death, her lover abandoned her, Lopakhin took away her estate, her brother doesn’t care about her. Against this background, she herself becomes cruel: she forgets Firs in the house, they nail him inside. In the image of all these troubles lies an inexorable fate that is unmerciful to people.
8. The problem of finding the meaning of life. Lopakhin clearly does not satisfy his meaning in life, which is why he rates himself so low. For Anna and Peter, this search is just ahead, but they are already meandering, unable to find a place for themselves. Ranevskaya and Gaev, with the loss of material wealth and their privilege, are lost and cannot find their way again.
9. The problem of love and selfishness is clearly visible in the contrast between brother and sister: Gaev loves only himself and does not particularly suffer from losses, but Ranevskaya has been looking for love all her life, but did not find it, and along the way she lost it. Only crumbs fell to Anechka and the cherry orchard. Even a loving person can become selfish after so many years of disappointment.
10. Problem moral choice and responsibility concerns, first of all, Lopakhin. He gets Russia, his activities can change it. However, he lacks the moral foundations to understand the importance of his actions for his descendants and to understand his responsibility to them. He lives by the principle: “After us, even a flood.” He doesn’t care what will happen, he sees what is.

Symbolism of the play

The main image in Chekhov's play is the garden. It not only symbolizes estate life, but also connects times and eras. The image of the Cherry Orchard is noble Russia, with his help Anton Pavlovich predicted the future changes that awaited the country, although he himself could no longer see them. It also expresses the author’s attitude to what is happening.

The episodes depict ordinary everyday situations, “little things in life,” through which we learn about the main events of the play. Chekhov mixes the tragic and the comic, for example, in the third act Trofimov philosophizes and then absurdly falls down the stairs. You can see a certain symbolism in this author's attitude: he makes fun of the characters, questions the veracity of their words.

The system of images is also symbolic, the meaning of which is described in a separate paragraph.

Composition

The first action is exposition. Everyone is waiting for the arrival of the owner of the estate, Ranevskaya, from Paris. In the house, everyone thinks and talks about their own things, without listening to others. The disunity located under the roof illustrates the multi-voiced Russia, where such not similar friend on each other people.

The beginning - Lyubov Andreeva and her daughter enter, gradually everyone learns that they are in danger of ruin. Neither Gaev nor Ranevskaya (brother and sister) can prevent it. Only Lopakhin knows a tolerable rescue plan: cut down the cherries and build dachas, but the proud owners do not agree with him.

Second action. During sunset, the fate of the garden is once again discussed. Ranevskaya arrogantly rejects Lopakhin's help and continues to remain inactive in the bliss of her own memories. Gaev and the merchant constantly quarrel.

Third act (climax): while the old owners of the garden are throwing a ball, as if nothing had happened, the auction is going on: the estate is acquired by the former serf Lopakhin.

Act four (denouement): Ranevskaya returns to Paris to squander the rest of her savings. After her departure, everyone goes their separate ways. Only the old servant Firs remains in the crowded house.

Innovation of Chekhov - playwright

It remains to be added that it is not without reason that the play cannot be understood by many schoolchildren. Many researchers attribute it to the theater of the absurd (what is this?). This is a very complex and controversial phenomenon in modernist literature, debates about the origin of which continue to this day. The fact is that Chekhov's plays, based on a number of characteristics, can be classified as the theater of the absurd. The characters' remarks very often do not have a logical connection with each other. They seem to be directed into nowhere, as if they are being uttered by one person and at the same time talking to himself. The destruction of dialogue, the failure of communication - this is what the so-called anti-drama is famous for. In addition, the alienation of the individual from the world, his global loneliness and life turned to the past, the problem of happiness - all these are features of the existential problems in the work, which are again inherent in the theater of the absurd. This is where the innovation of Chekhov the playwright manifested itself in the play “The Cherry Orchard”; these features attract many researchers in his work. Such a “provocative” phenomenon, misunderstood and condemned by public opinion, is difficult to fully perceive even for an adult, not to mention the fact that only a few people involved in the world of art managed to fall in love with the theater of the absurd.

Image system

Chekhov doesn't have speaking names, like Ostrovsky, Fonvizin, Griboyedov, but there are off-stage heroes (for example, a Parisian lover, a Yaroslavl aunt) who are important in the play, but Chekhov does not bring them into “external” action. In this drama there is no division between bad and good heroes, but there is a multi-faceted character system. Characters plays can be divided:

• on the heroes of the past (Ranevskaya, Gaev, Firs). They only know how to waste money and think, not wanting to change anything in their lives.
• on the heroes of the present (Lopakhin). Lopakhin is a simple “man” who, with the help of work, got rich, bought an estate and is not going to stop.
• on the heroes of the future (Trofimov, Anya) - this is the young generation dreaming of the highest truth and the highest happiness.

The heroes of The Cherry Orchard constantly jump from one topic to another. Despite the apparent dialogue, they do not hear each other. There are as many as 34 pauses in the play, which are formed between many “useless” statements of the characters. The phrase “You are still the same” is repeated repeatedly, which makes it clear that the characters do not change, they stand still.

The action of the play “The Cherry Orchard” begins in May, when the fruits of the cherry trees begin to bloom, and ends in October. The conflict does not have a pronounced character. All the main events that decide the future of the heroes take place behind the scenes (for example, estate auctions). That is, Chekhov completely abandons the norms of classicism.

Interesting? Save it on your wall!