Ermolai Alekseevich Lopakhin
I. Life story: “I remember when I was a boy of about fifteen, my deceased father - he hit me in the face with his fist, blood started to flow from my nose ... Then for some reason we came together in the yard, and he was drunk. Lyubov Andreevna, as I remember now, still young, so thin, took me to the washstand, in this very room, in the nursery ”(Lopakhin about himself); “My dad was a man, an idiot, he didn’t understand anything, he didn’t teach me, he only beat me when he was drunk, and all with a stick. In fact, I am the same fool and idiot. I didn’t learn anything, my handwriting is nasty, I write in such a way that people feel ashamed like a pig ”(Lopakhin about himself);
II. Attitude to what is happening: “You already know, your cherry orchard is being sold for debts, the auction is scheduled for August 22, but don’t worry, my dear, sleep well, there is a way out ... Here is my project. Attention please!" ; “The only wonderful thing about this garden is that it is very large. Cherry will be born in two years, and there is nowhere to put it, no one buys ”; “I remind you gentlemen: on the twenty-second of August the cherry orchard will be on sale. Think about it! .. Think! .. "
III. The opinion of the surrounding characters: “Your brother, here is Leonid Andreevich, says about me that I am a boor, I’m a fist, but this is absolutely all the same to me” (Lopakhin's quote to Ranevskaya); “He is a good man” (Ranevskaya about Lopakhin); "Man, we must tell the truth ... the most worthy ..." (Simeon-Pischik about Lopakhin); “... You are a rich man, you will soon be a millionaire. Just as in the sense of metabolism, a predatory beast is needed, which eats everything that comes its way, so you are needed ”(Trofimov on Lopakhin); "You have thin, gentle fingers, like an artist, you have a thin, gentle soul ..." (Trofimov to Lopakhin);

Lyubov Andreevna Ranevskaya
I. Life story: “I have always quarreled with money without restraint, like a madwoman, and married a man who did nothing but debts. My husband died of champagne, - he drank terribly, - and, unfortunately, I fell in love with another, got along, and just at that time - this was the first punishment, a blow right to the head - right here on the river ... my boy, and I went abroad, left completely, never to return, 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 the rest, either day or night; the patient tortured me, my soul dried up, I tried to poison myself ... So stupid, so ashamed. And suddenly I was drawn to Russia, to my homeland, to my girl ... ”(Ranevskaya about herself); “Six years ago my father died, a month later my brother Grisha, a pretty seven-year-old boy, drowned in the river. Mom could not bear it, she left, left without looking back ... ”(Anya about her mother); "Children's, my dear, beautiful room ... I slept here when I was little ... (Cries.) And now I am like a little ..." (Ranevskaya about herself); “She has already sold her dacha near Menton, she has nothing left, nothing” (Anya about her mother);
II. Attitude to what is happening: "If there is anything interesting, even wonderful, in the whole province, it is our cherry orchard"; "What do we do? Teach what? "; “But Leonid is still gone. What he has been doing in the city for so long I do not understand! After all, everything is already over there, the estate is sold or the auction did not take place, why keep in the dark for so long! ”; “The Yaroslavl grandmother sent fifteen thousand to buy an estate in her name, - she does not believe us, - and this money would not even be enough to pay the interest. (Covers his face with his hands.) Today my fate is being decided, my fate ... ”; “Just to know: is the estate sold or not? Misfortune seems to me so incredible that I don't even know what to think, I get lost ... I can shout now ... I can do a stupid thing. Save me, Petya "; "... Without a cherry orchard, I do not understand my life, and if you really need to sell, then sell me along with the garden ..."; “Indeed, now everything is fine. Before the sale of the cherry orchard, we all worried, suffered, and then, when the issue was finally resolved, irrevocably, everyone calmed down, even cheered up ... "
III. The opinion of the surrounding characters: “Lyubov Andreevna has lived abroad for five years, I don’t know what she has become now ... She is a good person. An easy, simple person ”(Lopakhin about Ranevskaya); “I would only like ... that your amazing, touching eyes looked at me, as before” (Lopakhin to Ranevskaya); “Sister has not yet lost the habit of wasting money” (Gaev about Ranevskaya); “Mommy is the same as she was, she hasn't changed at all. If it were her will, she would give everything away ”(Varya about Ranevskaya);
Anya
I. Life story: “We arrive in Paris, it is cold there, snow. I speak French terribly. Mom lives on the fifth floor, I come to her, she has some French, ladies, an old parterre with a book, and it’s smoky, uncomfortable ”; “My room, my windows, as if I hadn't left. I'm at home! Tomorrow morning I'll get up and run to the garden ... "
II. Attitude to what is happening: “What have you done to me, Petya, why I no longer love the cherry orchard, as before. I loved him so dearly, it seemed to me that there was no better place on earth than our garden ”; “We will plant a New Garden, more luxurious than this, you will see it, you will understand, and joy, quiet, deep joy will descend on your soul, like the sun in the evening hour, and you will smile, Mom!”
III. Opinion of the surrounding characters: "How you look like your mother!" (Gaev about Anya); “You are not my niece, you are my angel, you are everything to me. Believe me, believe ... ”(Gaev about Anya);
IV.
Varya
I. Life story: “I walk, darling, a whole day around the house and keep dreaming ...” (Turns to Anya); “He's been muttering like that for three years. We are used to it ”(Varya about Firs).
II. Attitude to what is happening: "If the Lord helped!"; “Uncle bought it, I'm sure of it”;
III. The opinion of the surrounding characters: "And Varya is still the same, she looks like a nun" (Ranevskaya about Var); "She is a good girl", "She is one of the simple ones, she works all day ..." (Ranevskaya about Var); “With her narrow head, she cannot understand that we are higher than love” (Trofimov about Var); “She’s very diligent, she doesn’t care about her own business” (Trofimov about Var);
Leonid Andreevich Gaev
I. Life story: “Once, sister and I, we slept in this very room, and now I'm fifty-one years old, oddly enough ...” (Gaev about himself);
II. Attitude to what is happening: “This is how we will act from three ends - and our business is in the bag. We will pay the interest, I am convinced ... By my honor, whatever you want, I swear the estate will not be sold! I swear by my happiness! Here's my hand, call me then a trashy, dishonest person, if I admit it to the auction! I swear with my whole being! ”;
III. Opinion of the surrounding characters: “I believe you, uncle. Everyone loves you, respects you ... but, dear uncle, you need to be silent, just be silent "," If you remain silent, then you yourself will be calmer "(Anya about Gaev); "How good you are, uncle, how smart!" (Anya about Gaev);
Pyotr Alekseevich Trofimov
I. Life story: "And Petya Trofimov was Grisha's teacher, he can remind ..." (Anya about Petya); “I am not yet thirty, I am young, I am still a student, but I have already endured so much! As winter, so I am hungry, sick, anxious, poor, beggar, and - wherever fate drove me, wherever I was! " (Trofimov about himself);
II. Attitude to what is happening: All Russia is our garden. The earth is great and beautiful, there are many wonderful places on it ”; “Is the estate sold today or not sold - isn't it all right? It has long been finished with it, there is no turning back, the path is overgrown. Calm down, dear. You shouldn't deceive yourself, you should at least once in your life look the truth straight in the eyes ”;
III. The opinion of the surrounding characters: "You were then quite a boy, a lovely student, and now your hair is thin, glasses" (Ranevskaya about Petya); “Our eternal student always walks with young ladies” (Lopakhin about Petya); "How smart you are, Petya!" (Ranevskaya about Petya); "Shabby gentleman" (Varya about Trofimov); "How ugly you have become, Petya, how old you are!" (Varya about Trofimov); “You boldly look ahead, and is it not because you do not see and do not expect anything terrible, since life is still hidden from your young eyes? You are bolder, more honest, deeper than us, but think about it, be generous at least at the tip of your finger ... ”(Ranevskaya to Trofimov); “I love you like my own” (Ranevskaya to Trofimov); “You have to be a man, in 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 do not have purity, but you are just a neat, funny eccentric, freak ... "," You are not above love, but simply, as our Firs says, you are a fool "(Ranevskaya to Trofimov);
Firs
I. Life story: “I have been living for a long time. They were going to marry me, but your dad was not yet in the world ... (Laughs.) But the will left, I was already the senior valet. Then I did not agree to freedom, stayed with the gentlemen ... ";
II. Attitude to what is happening: "In the old days, forty - fifty years ago, cherries were dried, soaked, pickled, jam was cooked, and it used to be ...";
III. The opinion of the surrounding characters: "Thank you, dear", "Thank you, my old man", "I'm so glad you're still alive" (Ranevskaya about Firs); “I'm tired of you, grandfather. If only he would die as soon as possible ”(Yasha to Firs);

The image of Gaev in the play "The Cherry Orchard" is very important to understand correctly. This is necessary to understand how Chekhov treated the representatives of the nobility. Our article describes in detail the image of Gaev in the play "The Cherry Orchard".

Gaev is the brother of the main character of the work, Ranevskaya, practically her double. His image, however, is less significant than that of this woman. That is why the hero of interest to us is presented as "Ranevskaya's brother" in the list of characters, although he is older than his sister and has the same rights to the estate.

Social status of Gaev

The photo above shows Stanislavsky as Gaev. Leonid Andreevich Gaev is a landowner who ate his fortune "on candy". He leads a rather idle lifestyle. Nevertheless, he is surprised that the garden needs to be sold for debts. This man is already 51 years old, but he does not have his own family. Gaev lives in an old estate, which is crumbling right before his eyes. He is under the tutelage of Firs, an old footman. The characterization of Gaev should be supplemented by the fact that he is constantly trying to borrow money from someone in order to at least cover the interest on his debts and on the debts of his sister. for him is the repayment of all loans. This landowner hopes to receive an inheritance from someone, to marry Anna off as a wealthy person, to go to Yaroslavl, where he can try his luck with the countess-aunt.

Caricature of the nobility

The image of Gaev in the play "The Cherry Orchard" is a caricature of the nobility. The negative qualities of the landowner Ranevskaya are even more ugly presented in the character of her brother, which emphasizes the comic nature of everything that happens. The description of Gaev, in contrast to Ranevskaya, is placed mainly in the stage directions. His character is revealed mainly through actions, and other characters in the play say very little about him.

Attitude of others to Gaev

The author tells us very little about Gaev's past. However, we understand that this person is educated, that he knows how to clothe his thoughts in beautiful speeches, albeit empty ones. All his life, the hero we are interested in has lived on the estate. He was a regular at men's clubs, where he indulged in the game of billiards, his favorite pastime. It was from there that Gaev brought all the news. Here he was offered the position of an employee in a bank with a good annual salary of 6 thousand. The people around were very surprised by this proposal. Sister Gaeva directly says to Leonid Andreevich: "Where are you! Sit down already." Lopakhin also expresses his doubt about this, believing that Gaev will not be able to hold on to the proposed position, since he is "very lazy." Only Anya, the hero's niece, believes in him.

What caused this distrust in relation to Gaev? The surrounding people even show some disdain for this hero. Even the footman Yasha is disrespectful to him. Let's resolve this issue, which will help us better understand the image of Gaev in the play "The Cherry Orchard".

Leonid Andreevich

Gayev is a person who can be called an idle talker. He sometimes indulges in ranting at the most inopportune moments. Because of this, his interlocutors get lost and often ask him to shut up. Gaev Leonid Andreevich himself realizes this, but he cannot cope with an unpleasant trait of his character. In addition, the characterization of Gaev's image should be supplemented by the fact that he is very childish. Leonid Andreevich cannot defend his opinion, he is not even able to clearly formulate his point of view. This hero is often unable to say something to the point. Instead, he utters his favorite word "who". In the speech of the hero we are interested in, inappropriate billiard terms also constantly appear.

Relationship with Firs, sister and nieces

Servant Firs still follows his master as if he were a little child. He either shakes off the dust from his trousers, then brings Gayev a warm coat. Meanwhile, Leonid Andreevich is an adult fifty-year-old man. However, he does not consider such guardianship by his servant shameful. The hero even goes to sleep under the supervision of his lackey, who is sincerely attached to him. Despite such devotion to Firs, in the finale of the work, Gaev forgets about him.

He loves his sister and his nieces. Gaev is the only man in his family. However, he was unable to become the head of the family. The hero is not able to help anyone, since it does not even occur to him. This indicates that Gaev's feelings are very shallow.

Is the cherry orchard dear to Gaev?

The image of Leonid Gayev is also revealed in his attitude to the cherry orchard. For our hero, he means a lot, as well as for his sister. Gaev does not want to accept Lopakhin's offer, as does Ranevskaya. He believes that it would be "commonplace" to divide his estate into plots and lease them. After all, this will bring his family closer to businessmen like Lopakhin. This would be unacceptable for Leonid Andreevich, since he considers himself a true aristocrat and looks down on merchants like Yermolai Alekseevich. When Gayev returns from the auction, where his estate was sold, he is depressed, tears are visible in his eyes. However, when he hears the cue hitting the balls, his mood immediately improves. This fact tells us that the hero is not characterized by deep feelings. This is an important feature that complements the image of Gaev in the play "The Cherry Orchard" by Chekhov.

The meaning of the image of Gaev

The character we are interested in closes the chain, which consists of the images of the nobles, depicted by Anton Pavlovich Chekhov. The author introduced us to the "heroes of their time" - well-educated aristocrats who cannot defend their ideals. Because of this weakness of the nobles, people like Lopakhin have the opportunity to occupy a dominant position in society. Anton Pavlovich deliberately underestimated the image of Gaev in the comedy "The Cherry Orchard" as much as possible, making it a caricature. This was necessary in order to show the degree of crushing of the nobles.

Did the author succeed in "The Cherry Orchard"?

His work is presented above) caused a great Many of his contemporaries belonging to the aristocracy, very critical of this play. They accused Anton Pavlovich of ignorance of their circle, of misrepresenting his class. You can hardly blame Chekhov for this. After all, he tried to create not just a comedy, but a real farce, which he did very well. Of course, he succeeded in the image of Gaev. Many of our contemporaries are familiar with quotations from the comedy "The Cherry Orchard", and the play itself is included in the compulsory school curriculum for literature. This work is still very popular in the theaters of our country. All this speaks of the undoubted value of the "Cherry Orchard" from an artistic point of view.

Lesson objectives:

educational:

• to expand the understanding of the work of A.P. Chekhov through the analysis of the play by A.P. Chekhov;
• to consolidate theoretical knowledge - an image, a symbol;

developing:

• develop associative, imaginative thinking, the ability to analyze, generalize, draw conclusions;

educational:

• contribute to the spiritual development of students, the formation of moral values.

Lesson type: a lesson in the assimilation of new knowledge.

Methods:

• text analysis
• conversation
• drawing up a table

Equipment:

• a computer
• projector
• multimedia presentation
• texts

Epigraph:

All Russia is our garden.
A.P. Chekhov

During the classes

I. Organizational moment.

Announcement of the topic and purpose of the lesson.

II. New material.

1. Introductory remarks by the teacher.

The cherry orchard is a complex and ambiguous image. This is not only a specific garden, which is part of the Gayev and Ranevskaya estate, but also an image - a symbol.

A symbol - (from the Greek symbolon - a sign, an identifying sign) is an idea, image or object that has its own content and at the same time represents some other content in a generalized, undeveloped form.

The Cherry Orchard in the comedy by A.P. Chekhov symbolizes not only the beauty of Russian nature, but most importantly - the beauty of the life of people who grew this garden and admired it, that life.

Slides 1, 2, 3

2. Let's turn to the main characters of the comedy.

Question to the class:

What visions appeared in your mind at the mention of the name Gaev?

(Through the "search for associations", students should see pictures of a green "guy", or forest, and conclude that all the ancestors of the Gayevs (and Lyubov Andreevna and Anya are also representatives of this genus) lived in the green of the forests. The name of Ranevskaya is associated with autumn apples " ranet ", therefore, with a garden, with a plant principle. And her name - Love - turned out to be associated with" love for the garden. "Associations of this name with a" wound ", with a" wounded garden "may also arise.

The surname Lopakhin can be associated with a "shovel" throwing the ground, with strong hands that are not afraid of anything, and the name Ermolai connects the hero with a low class, with a common people way of life.

Anya, although she has the surname Ranevskaya, but the name is different, so she has no love for the garden.)

As in any highly artistic work, in Chekhov's play everything is motivated. The names of the main characters correspond to the garden.

(Finding associations can bring students closer to the correct understanding of images.)

3. Questions to the class:

What is the relation to the garden of the heroes of the play?

Slide 4, 5, 6, 7, 8

Students draw up and complete a table. They work with the text of the work.

4. What is the attitude of Firs and Petya Trofimov to the cherry orchard?

Slides 9.10

(For Firs garden - lordly well-being.

"In the old days, forty or fifty years ago, cherries were dried, soaked, pickled, jam was made ... There was money!"

For Trofimov: the cherry orchard symbolizes the serf past.

"Really ... human beings do not look at you from every leaf, from every trunk ...".

"All Russia is our garden" - this is his dream of a transformed homeland, but it is not clear by whose forces this will be done.)

5. The image of cherry unites all the characters in the play. At first glance, it seems that these are only relatives and old acquaintances who, by chance, gathered in the estate to solve their everyday problems. But this is not the case. The writer connects characters of different ages and social groups, and they must somehow decide the fate of the garden, and therefore their own.

6. Question to the class:

What is the symbol of the cherry orchard in the play by A.P. Chekhov?

(Garden is a symbol of home, a symbol of beauty, a symbol of the past, a symbol of the present, a symbol of the future)

For the author, the garden embodies love for the native nature; bitterness because they cannot preserve her beauty and wealth; important is the author's idea of ​​a person who can change life; the garden is a symbol of a lyrical, poetic attitude towards the Motherland. In the author's remarks: "beautiful garden", "wide open space", the sound of a broken string, the clatter of an ax.

Chekhov: "In the second act you will give me a real green field and a road, and an extraordinary distance for the scene." "The sound ... should be shorter and felt from far away."

8. Pupils comment on the epigraph to the lesson: "All Russia is our garden." A.P. Chekhov

Slides 13, 14, 15

III. Lesson summary.

The garden is a symbol of the homeland, its past and future.

The play "The Cherry Orchard" is a play about Russia, about its fate. Russia at a crossroads - an auction in the play. Who will be the master of the country? Chekhov worries about his country, the play is his testament, but at the same time he understands that it is necessary to break the old, to leave him.

Homework: Answer the question: "What future awaits Russia?"

How does the heroes of the play by A. Chekhov "The Cherry Orchard" characterize their perception of the cherry orchard and their attitude to it?

Chekhov's last play became the most famous work of Russian drama of the 20th century. Each critic interprets the play in its own way: someone from a psychological point of view, and someone from a social point of view, but, probably, there is no person who would not admit that the cherry orchard is one of the main images of the play.

If there is a noticeable disunity between the characters of The Cherry Orchard, often they simply do not see and do not hear each other (this is felt in some dialogues, when everyone throws remarks into the void and does not wait for an answer), then the cherry orchard is the character to whom they turn all without exception. He is loved, adored, admired, or indifferent to him, but no one ignores him.

Many characters are revealed through the attitude to the cherry orchard. So, we simply could not imagine Ranevskaya with her sensitive soul without heartfelt appeals to the cherry orchard. For her, he is almost a synonym for paradise. She animates him with the power of her imagination, turning to him, as the keeper of her youth, enthusiastic calls: "Oh my dear, my tender, beautiful garden! .. My life, my youth, my happiness ..." Saying goodbye to the garden, she says goodbye to youth, although at heart she is still a young girl, but rather a child in her touching helplessness. Ranevskaya, of course, is a very sensitive, gentle nature, but all the pathos of her speeches addressed to the garden is the usual idle talk, behind which there is not even a thought about keeping the garden in reality. In this, Ranevskaya is very reminiscent of her brother, who can turn with a rant to any subject, even to a closet. And the garden for him is nothing more than a kind of romantic symbol. As soon as it comes to trading, that is, about something mundane, Gaev dismisses it - "what nonsense." Both Ranevskaya and Gaev live according to the laws of their imaginations, not realizing that they have no power in the real world. People for whom the garden has become a part of their destiny do not even try to actually save it. They hope for an inheritance, for Varya's marriage, for some other miracle. It does not occur to them that salvation is just around the corner. It is offered to them by Lopakhin with great persistence.

Lopakhin, who at the end of the play began cutting down the garden, ironically is the only person who can truly appreciate it. For Gaev and Ranevskaya garden, there is only a beautiful decoration, another attribute of their worthless life. Lopakhin is a businessman (so, with a tinge of contempt, everyone in the estate calls him), and it is his commercial instinct that prompts the only way out not only to improve the financial situation of the family, but also to save the garden - dividing it into summer cottages. This proposal evokes frightened exclamations of the brother and sister, and yet they cannot fail to understand that otherwise the garden will be sold and an even more certain death awaits it.

Lopakhin, acting in the unattractive role of a successful nosy native of the lower class, is the owner of a much more sensitive soul than the same Gaev, even if this soul is hidden behind rude manners and stumbling speech. Lopakhin's initial intentions are as noble as possible. Oi wants to save the cherry orchard for the sake of Lyubov Andreevna, for whom he has unspoken and fully conscious feelings. Alas, Lopakhin's social activities are completely at odds with the good intentions that live in his soul. The nobility turned into a mockery. Chekhov, in his laconic manner, through the perception of the cherry orchard, showed the best qualities of a person's soul, and his love, and an unhappy fate.

In the end, buying out a cherry orchard does not bring happiness either to the former owners, who are forced to hear the sound of an ax leaving beautiful hemp trees in place, or to the new owner, who, rejoicing in the "accidental" acquisition, cannot help but feel the pain it inflicts.

If for the older generation the cherry orchard is practically a living being, to which enthusiastic speeches turn, the attitude towards which reveals purity, cordiality, youthfulness of soul, then the younger generation does not suffer from sentimentality about the garden. That is why Varya, Anya and Petya seem to be much older than people of the previous generation.

In the souls of Petya and Anya there is no place for the past, their thoughts are directed to the future, although most often Trofimov's speeches, which Anya admires so much, are nothing more than rhetoric. Petya is shown as a person sensitive to the dictates of time, but somewhat dull in the perception of beauty, the embodiment of which is the cherry orchard. Petya is absolutely unresponsive to the beauty of nature, but, unable to avoid the tacit presence of the cherry orchard, he is forced, at least, to pay attention to its existence and reckon with it. She cannot ignore the cherry orchard, but she can talk about abstract concepts even when it comes to a specific garden: "All Russia is our garden," "We will plant a new garden, more luxurious than this ..." in the sound of his speeches, strives somewhere, and the cherry orchard simply remains out of her field of vision, especially since she, unlike her mother and uncle, does not have pleasant memories associated with this place. Her half-sister Varya is a pragmatic and rather down-to-earth person, which is why she is just as indifferent to the garden.

The Cherry Orchard is the pinnacle of Russian drama at the beginning of the 20th century, a lyrical comedy, a play that marked the beginning of a new era in the development of Russian theater.

The main theme of the play is autobiographical - a bankrupt family of nobles is auctioning off their family estate. The author, as a person who has gone through a similar life situation, describes with a subtle psychologism the state of mind of people who are soon forced to leave their home. The novelty of the play is the lack of division of heroes into positive and negative, major and minor. They all fall into three categories:

• people of the past - noble aristocrats (Ranevskaya, Gaev and their lackey Firs);
• people of the present - their bright representative, the merchant-entrepreneur Lopakhin;
• people of the future - progressive youth of that time (Peter Trofimov and Anya).

History of creation

Chekhov began work on the play in 1901. Due to serious health problems, the writing process was rather difficult, but nevertheless, in 1903, the work was completed. The first theatrical production of the play took place a year later on the stage of the Moscow Art Theater, becoming the pinnacle of Chekhov's work as a playwright and a textbook classic of the theatrical repertoire.

Analysis of the piece

Description of the work

The action takes place in the family estate of the landowner Lyubov Andreevna Ranevskaya, who returned from France with her young daughter Anya. At the railway station, they are met by Gaev (Ranevskaya's brother) and Varya (her adopted daughter).

The financial situation of the Ranevsky family is approaching complete collapse. The entrepreneur Lopakhin offers his version of the solution to the problem - to divide the land plot into shares and give them to summer residents for a certain fee. The lady is burdened by this offer, because for this she will have to say goodbye to her beloved cherry orchard, which is associated with many fond memories of her youth. Adding to the tragedy is the fact that her beloved son Grisha died in this garden. Gayev, imbued with the feelings of his sister, reassures her with a promise that their family estate will not be put up for sale.

The action of the second part takes place on the street, in the courtyard of the estate. Lopakhin, with his characteristic pragmatism, continues to insist on his plan to save the estate, but no one pays attention to him. Everyone switches to the appeared teacher Pyotr Trofimov. He delivers an excited speech on the fate of Russia, its future and touches on the topic of happiness in a philosophical context. The materialist Lopakhin is skeptical about the young teacher, and it turns out that only Anya is capable of being imbued with his lofty ideas.

The third act begins with Ranevskaya's last money inviting the orchestra and arranging a dance evening. At the same time, Gaev and Lopakhin are absent - they left for the city for the auction, where the Ranevsky estate should go under the hammer. After anxious waiting, Lyubov Andreevna learns that her estate was bought at auction by Lopakhin, who does not hide the joy of his acquisition. The Ranevsky family is in despair.

The final is entirely devoted to the departure of the Ranevsky family from their home. The scene of parting is shown with all the deep psychologism inherent in Chekhov. The play ends with a remarkably deep monologue by Firs, which the owners in a hurry forgot in the estate. The final chord is the clatter of an ax. The cherry orchard is being cut.

main characters

Sentimental person, owner of the estate. Having lived for several years abroad, she is accustomed to a luxurious life and, by inertia, continues to allow herself a lot that, given the deplorable state of her finances, according to the logic of common sense, should be inaccessible to her. Being a frivolous person, very helpless in everyday matters, Ranevskaya does not want to change anything in herself, while she is fully aware of her weaknesses and shortcomings.

A successful merchant, he owes a lot to the Ranevsky family. His image is ambiguous - it combines diligence, prudence, enterprise and rudeness, a "peasant" beginning. In the finale of the play, Lopakhin does not share the feelings of Ranevskaya, he is happy that, despite his peasant origin, he was able to afford to buy the estate of the owners of his late father.

Like his sister, he is very sensitive and sentimental. Being an idealist and romantic, to comfort Ranevskaya, he comes up with fantastic plans to save the family estate. He is emotional, verbose, but at the same time completely inactive.

Petya Trofimov

An eternal student, a nihilist, an eloquent representative of the Russian intelligentsia, who stands up for the development of Russia only in words. In pursuit of the "higher truth", he denies love, considering it a shallow and ghostly feeling, which immensely grieves Ranevskaya's daughter Anya, who is in love with him.

A romantic 17-year-old young lady who fell under the influence of the populist Pyotr Trofimov. Recklessly believing in a better life after the sale of her parental estate, Anya is ready for any difficulties for the sake of joint happiness next to her lover.

An 87-year-old man, a footman in the Ranevskys' house. A type of servant of the old times, he surrounds his masters with paternal care. He remained to serve his masters even after the abolition of serfdom.

A young lackey, with contempt for Russia, dreaming of going abroad. A cynical and cruel man, rude to old Firs, even disrespectful to his own mother.

The structure of the work

The structure of the piece is quite simple - 4 acts without dividing into separate scenes. The duration is several months, from late spring to mid-autumn. In the first act there is an exposition and a set-up, in the second - an increase in tension, in the third - the culmination (sale of the estate), in the fourth - the denouement. A characteristic feature of the play is the absence of genuine external conflict, dynamism, and unpredictable twists in the storyline. Author's remarks, monologues, pauses and some understatement give the play a unique atmosphere of exquisite lyricism. The artistic realism of the play is achieved through the alternation of dramatic and comic scenes.

(Scene from a modern production)

The play is dominated by the development of the emotional and psychological plan, the main driving force of the action is the inner experiences of the characters. The author expands the artistic space of the work by introducing a large number of characters who will never appear on the stage. The effect of expanding the spatial boundaries is also given by the symmetrically arising theme of France, which gives an arched form to the play.

Final conclusion

Chekhov's last play can be said to be his "swan song". The novelty of her dramatic language is a direct expression of a special Chekhovian concept of life, which is characterized by an extraordinary attention to small, seemingly insignificant details, a focus on the inner experiences of the heroes.

In the play "The Cherry Orchard", the author captured the state of critical disunity in Russian society of his time, this sad factor is often present in scenes where the characters hear only themselves, creating only the appearance of interaction.