Essay on "Anton Chekhov's Short Story "A Problem"

Essay 5 pages (1523 words) Sources: 0

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Anton Chekhov's Short story "A Problem" presents a dilemma involving Sasha Uskov and his family. "A Problem" is fascinating in that it explores the reality of cause and effect and whether or not youthful indiscretion is more problematic than sometimes realized. Throughout "A Problem" Chekhov exposes the conflict in philosophies as it pertains to civic duty vs. family honor. Overall the author presents an underlying theme that exposes the true nature of the criminal mind and the feeling of shame of embarrassment that occurs when a relative betrays the trust of the one that believes in him the most.

The characteristics of Sasha and the interactions between his uncles add to the events in the story and plot development by revealing Sasha personal thoughts about himself and the trajectory of his life. In fact, Chekhov's representation of Sasha's thought patterns add a great deal to the events in the story. Sasha's personal monologue, for instance, exposes the reader to the young man's thought process. Sasha is indifferent about the situation and he has lost hope. Chekhov is showing the reader that the young man has indeed had a great deal of difficulty growing up; so much so that he now sees his future as black regardless of how his uncles choose to handle the situation. Sasha also seems unsure about what he did wrong and does not consider himself a criminal. He claims that everyone around him has forged something and that debt is not a crime, even his uncles were in debt.

As it pertains to plot development Sasha's thoughts and his interaction and reactions to the assertions made by his uncles are telling. Sasha wants to justify his actions by rationalizing in his mind that the actions were not criminal because everyone does them. The uncles, however, are mature enough to know and understand that Sasha's actions are wrong, they just disagree about how he should be punished. The plot therefore presents several main ideas including the following: Negative actions deserve the consequences agreed upon by society, the consequences of negative actions should take into account the life and by extension the mindset of the individual who committed the negative action. When these things are considered the consequences for negative actions may need to be adjusted. In Sasha's case the circumstances of his life left him selfish and he did not have the ability to understand that just because certain actions are common, it does not mean that those actions are correct. Sasha had given up on himself and decided that he was a criminal and that is who he would be. One section of the short story seemed to lend itself to the idea that Sasha did not believe himself to be a criminal. However, by the end the story Sasha was resolute in his decision that he was indeed a criminal and his actions toward his uncle were consistent with this assertion.

The uncles are used to present ethical and moral principles. The colonel believes that the uncles have a civic responsibility to ensure that Sasha is punished. Uncle Ivan represents the concept of redemption. Ivan represents the notion that individuals who behave criminally often try to justify their actions even to the point of denying the criminality. The situational irony is that by the end of the story Sasha concedes that he is indeed a criminal. In addition, his uncle Ivan sees Sasha for who he really is. Ivan sees that Sasha's behavior is not just attributable to "the rights of youth" or youthful mistakes. Sasha shows little remorse for what he has done and threatens to do it again if his uncle does not give him the money he wants. The colonel was right when he questioned whether or not the lack of punishment would lead to Sasha getting in to even more trouble. By the end of the story it becomes obvious that Sasha does not care about his behavior or the manner in which said behavior effects other people, including his family.

The interaction between the characters is also interesting because of the amount of compassion that the uncle and the aunt have for Sasha. In the end even the colonel had some compassion for the young man because he agreed that the debt would be paid and Sasha would not have to go to trial. Sasha did even have the ability to speak for himself or justify why they shouldn't send him to trial. Overall his uncles and aunt believed in him more than he believed in himself. They believed that he would overcome his youthful indiscretions. Uncle Ivan had the most faith in Sasha and he is also the one that Sasha blackmailed into giving him money. There is also situational irony in this section of the story because Sasha was basically threatening to embarrass Ivan in the same way that he would have embarrassed his paternal uncles had the case gone to trial. Chekhov uses the empathetic personalities of Ivan and Sasha's aunt to reveal the situational Irony of the story.

What is Chekhov's underlying theme? (i.e., Is the story written for humor or is there an underlying message?)

"A Problem" while offering some humor definitely has an underlying message; basically the story presents to the reader an ethical and even philosophical dilemma. On the one hand it is obvious that Sasha has done something wrong and there are severe consequences that will come as a result if his uncles do not intervene. On the other hand if his uncles do intervene Sasha will not receive the punishment due to him for the crime he has committed. A lack of intervention would also mean that the family name would be tarnished and as such the family will be openly ridiculed in public. The paternal uncle who is a colonel in the story represents a bastian of moral truth that is extremely dedicated to the notion that every cause has an effect. In Sasha's case the consequences of his actions could result in punishment handed down from a court of law and the family honor may also be disgraced. In the eyes of the colonel Sasha taking full responsibility for what he has done is a noble action and the concept of family honor falsely understood is nothing more than prejudice. The colonel explains "whatever may be the motives for screening a scoundrel, whoever he may be, and helping him to escape punishment, it is contrary to law and unworthy of a gentleman. it's not saving the family honour; it's civic cowardice (Chekhov)! "

At the other end of the spectrum is Ivan Markovitch, Sasha's maternal uncle. While Ivan also acknowledges that Sasha's actions were wrong, he asserts that such actions are common in ones youth and as such the young man should be shown some mercy. In addition Ivan believed that the life of the young man should be considered when attempting to figure out how or if he should be punished. Ivan explains "If Sasha's error bordered upon crime, they must remember that Sasha had received practically no education; he had been expelled from the high school in the fifth class; he had lost his parents in early childhood, and so had been left at the tenderest age without guidance and good, benevolent influences. He was nervous, excitable, had no firm ground under his feet, and, above all, he had been unlucky. Even if he were guilty, anyway he deserved indulgence and the sympathy of all compassionate souls (Chekhov)." In this instance Chekhov is suggesting that issues of morality are not always as black and white as they may seem on the surface. As such an individual who has experienced a great deal of difficulty in life without the benefit of an education or guidance should not be… READ MORE

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