Teen Reader
“The Lady with the Dog” (1899)
“The Lady with the Dog” Text Version
“The Lady with the Dog” Audio Version
Anton Chekhov (born January 29 [January 17, Old Style], 1860, Taganrog, Russia—died July 14/15 [July 1/2], 1904, Badenweiler, Germany) was a Russian playwright and master of the modern short story. He was a literary artist of laconic precision who probed below the surface of life, laying bare the secret motives of his characters. Chekhov’s best plays and short stories lack complex plots and neat solutions. Concentrating on apparent trivialities, they create a special kind of atmosphere, sometimes termed haunting or lyrical. He is known for the principle in drama called "Chekhov’s gun," which asserts that every element introduced in a story should be necessary to the plot, and he frequently illustrated the principle by using a gun as an example of an essential element. Chekhov described the Russian life of his time using a deceptively simple technique devoid of obtrusive literary devices, and he is regarded as the outstanding representative of the late 19th-century Russian realist school.
“The Lady with the Dog” Discussion Questions
1.) Why does Gurov call women “an inferior race”?
2.) At the end of section I, Gurov thinks that there is “something pathetic” about Anna Sergeyevna. Is there? What is it?
3.) Why is Anna so distracted as she watches the steamer putting in?
4.) How does Anna differ from other women Gurov has known, as they are described in the paragraph that ends “the lace on their lingerie seemed to him to resemble scales”? Compare this passage with the paragraph that begins “His head was already beginning to turn gray.”
5.) In view of what follows, is it appropriate that Gurov should see Anna as a Magdalene?
6.) What is the function of the paragraph that begins “At Oreanda they sat on a bench not far from the church”?
7.) What “complete change” does Gurov undergo during his affair with Anna at Yalta? Is it permanent?
8.) Explain Gurov’s remark at the end of section II: “High time!”
9.) Why is Gurov enraged at his companion’s remark about the sturgeon?
10.) Discuss the possible meanings of the objects Gurov encounters in S—: the broken figurine, the long gray fence, the cheap blanket, and so on.
11.) Seeing Anna enter the theater, Gurov “understood clearly that in the whole world there was no human being so near, so precious, and so important to him.” What is Chekhov’s tone in this statement?
12.) Explain Anna’s reaction to Gurov’s arrival. Why does she volunteer to come to Moscow?
13.) Discuss the implications of Gurov’s “two lives” as Chekhov explains them in section IV. Do you agree with the generalizations about the desire for privacy with which the paragraph ends? Relate these ideas to the story’s ending.
14.) What will life be life for Gurov and Anna? Anna has previously said, “I have never been happy; I am unhappy now, and I never, never shall be happy, never!” Is she right?
Easy Reader
Atoms
Storybooks for Elementary, Intensive Support, and Preschool
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Green Eggs and Ham
The Big Cheese
In Spanish
Mi Amigo Esta Triste
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