‘The Darling’ is a short story written by the Russian playwright Anton Chekhov and published in January 1899 in the Semya Magazine. The story follows the life of a woman, Olenka who is referred to as “The Darling”, and delves into the complex dynamics of her relationships.
The Darling | Summary
‘The Darling’ by Anton Chekhov opens with Olenka: the daughter of a retired collegiate assessor Plemyanikov. Olenka sits on the back door steps of her house while the dark rain clouds gather from the east. She listens to Kukin, manager of Tivoli- an open-air theatre ramble about the rain and cursing his fate. He complains about how the rain ruins his business, as he can’t get enough audience for the theatre and as a result, he is left with almost nothing to pay for his expenses.
As the days pass by with Kukin complaining about the weather, Olenka listens to him in silence and tears roll down her eyes. She falls in love with Kukin and they get married. They both get along together. She works as a cashier at Tivoli and looks after the theatre and its expenses. She adopts Kukin’s opinions about theatre and starts imitating his thought processes, the way he spoke about the public being indifferent to theatre and preferring the circus instead, and eventually gets preoccupied with the theatre.
At Lent, Kukin leaves for Moscow to gather a company of artists for his theatre and Olenka waits for him to return. Unable to sleep at night, she gazes at the stars from her window. Kukin is detained in Moscow but he assures her that he will return during Easter week. Later, she receives a telegram mentioning that Kukin is dead.
After three months, while Olenka was in her mourning period, she met Vasily Pustovalov, the manager of merchant Babakayev’s lumber yard. She falls in love with him and soon enough they are married. They both live happily together and in the absence of Vasily, Olenka manages work related to despatching orders and attending to book-keeping. She began replicating his opinions about business and she takes pleasure in the same activities as her husband – that is going to vespers or an early mass on holidays.
When Pustovalov goes to buy wood, she is distracted by Smirnov, a veterinary surgeon who is lodged in the wing of her house. They both play cards and he narrates to her stories about his life. Smirnov is married and has a son, but he is separated from his wife because she deceives him. When Pustovalov returns, she recounts the veterinary surgeon’s unhappy life. Later, in winter, Vasily goes to the lumber yard after drinking hot tea and catches a cold. He falls sick and dies after four months. Olenka is again left as a widow.
After six months of her husband’s death, Olenka begins life as usual. The veterinary surgeon is seen drinking tea in her garden and he reads the paper for Olenka. Soon, she absorbs his opinions and is attracted to Smirnov. They both are happy together; however, their relationship does not develop any further as he is transferred to a distant place and Olenka is left alone.
As a result, of no man in her life, she is no longer happy and thinks about the dubious life that is about to begin. She no longer holds any opinions, although she understands everything but cannot form an opinion. She grows gloomy year after year without any joy in her life. One day in July, Smirnov returns to town with his wife and son, Sasha and he is looking for a place to stay when Olenka offers him her house. Olenka preoccupies herself with Sasha and she begins to replicate his opinions.
Later, Smirnov’s wife leaves for Kharkiv to visit her sister and never returns. Smirnov is busy with cattle and sometimes goes away for three days at a time. Abandoned with Sasha, Olenka grows fond of the little boy and develops a maternal instinct towards him.
Sasha grows tired of the attention that he receives from Olenka. She begins to have the same ideas and opinions as Sasha, but this time she absorbs them from a child instead of a male partner. The story ends with Sasha crying out in protest.
The Darling | Analysis
‘The Darling’ is a short story by Anton Chekhov, which revolves around the life of its protagonist – Olenka. From the very beginning, Olenka is described as a compassionate, kind-hearted, and loving girl. The people around Olenka refer to her as “The Darling” because of her personality.
The story is narrated from a third-person point of view and is set in a provincial town in mid-nineteenth-century Russia. Since Chekhov was a part of the Realist Literary movement, he presents a realistic picture of town life through his narrative.
Chekhov evokes a sympathetic response from the readers for the character of Olenka. She is a gentlewoman yet flawed because she is not independent in her choices. She falls in love with Kukin – “She was always loving somebody. She couldn’t get on without loving somebody”. They get married and she soon begins to absorb his ideas, opinions about theatre, and almost everything. She was a mirror image of him. Through the character of Olenka, the author suggests that she lacked a sense of individuality. Her future relationships with Vasily Pustovalov, Smirnov, and the young boy Sasha highlight how Olenka’s relationships consume her entirely leaving her no respect in any.
Through the character of Vasily Pustovalov, Chekhov indicates the rise of the merchant class in Russia. This class had an exclusive taste and the author indicates it through the lavish food that Vasily and Olenka eat and that she preoccupies herself with book-keeping and despatching orders.
The readers realize that in the absence of these men in her life, she is full of despair and sadness. She is as good as a dead soul. She does not have opinions, although she understands everything that happens around her. It suggests that she was given a sense of purpose through the men in her life and without them, she is left with nothing.
The Darling | Title
The title of the story ‘The Darling’ is of great significance and sheds light on the central character of the story – Olenka. It encapsulates her character’s essence and conveys her likeability. It symbolizes that the narrative will revolve around the relationships and personal experiences of Olenka. She is frequently addressed as “You Darling” by people around her which represents her amiable nature. However, the story revolves around Olenka but the title chosen is ‘The Darling’ rather than her actual name, this deliberate choice of the author refers to the idea that the protagonist’s identity is developed by people around her and that her character lacks a sense of self
The Darling | Character Sketch
Olenka is the protagonist of Anton Chekhov’s short story ‘The Darling’. She is a complex character with endearing qualities and vulnerabilities. Olenka is portrayed as a quiet, compassionate, and kind-hearted woman. She possesses a gentle nature that attracts people’s attention towards her. However, Olenka’s compassionate nature is intertwined with a co-dependent tendency in her relationships. She always seeks someone to love and care for as if her existence depends on having a partner to rely on. While Olenka’s willingness to adopt her partner’s opinions and mannerisms may attract admiration it ultimately leads to a lack of respect in her relationships. Throughout the story, Olenka remains a flat and static character, which means she does not undergo personal change or growth, resulting in a stagnant existence. She is simply referred to as “You Darling” and is a passive character with an inability to have a sense of personal agency in her relationships.
The Darling | Literary Devices
Chekhov uses several literary devices in ‘The Darling’ to enhance the narrative and present to the readers an understanding of the characters and themes of the story.
The author skillfully uses vivid imagery to create a realistic picture of the central character of Olenka. The description of Olenka allows the readers to create a visual picture of her physical appearance and personality – for instance, Chekhov writes “Looking at her full rosy cheeks, at her soft white neck with the black mole and at the goof naïve smile that always played on her face”. Another instance of imagery would be the elaborate description of the buffet at Pustovalov’s house: “At home, they drank tea with milk-bread and various jams and then ate pie. Every day at noontime there was an appetizing odor in the yard and outside the gate of cabbage soup, roast mutton, or duck and on fast days, of fish.”
The author also makes use of antithesis to present the contrasting appearances of Olenka and Kukin- “Olenka grew fuller and was always beaming with contentment; while Kukin grew thinner and yellower and complained of his terrible losses”. It highlights the dissimilarities and experiences of the husband and his wife which symbolises an imbalance in their marriage.
The Darling | Themes
The story explores the theme of co-dependency on male figures in Olenka’s relationships, highlighting her lack of sense of self and individuality.
Olenka is dependent on her male partners to support her emotionally and provide comfort. She derives purpose and identity from these connections. Her own identity is blurred as Olenka is overshadowed by her desire to absorb her partner’s opinions and ideas. Her personality traits as a kind-hearted and compassionate individual shape her relationships, however, she lacks respect in these connections as she is merely a mirror for the male figures. One can understand her need to feel connected and belong to somebody, because when her partners die or leave her, she is accompanied by despair and mourning, suggesting that her emotional stability has relied on a partner. By the end of the story, Olenka extends her admiration towards Sasha, as a doting mother and absorbs his opinions and ideas without asserting her own. Thus, Olenka sacrifices herself in pursuit of love, as depicted by the author.