Concerning Love by Anton Chekhov
Anton Chekhov’s Concerning Love is exactly that, a short story concerning the love that both Alyokhin and Anna Luganovich feel for each other but never act upon. The love started when Alyokhin took up a part-time job in town as the honorary justice of peace. Through his work he met Anna’s husband, Dmitry Luganovich, who invited Alyokhin back to his house for dinner. Alyokhin immediately took a strong liking towards Anna, “…here was a young, beautiful, kind, intelligent, enchanting woman, unlike any I’d met before” (148). However, he failed to act on his love for Anna because “judging from little details” he “…concluded that they [Anna and her husband] were living peacefully and happily” (148), a happy married life with children yet, little did Alyokhin know that Anna was truly yearning for his love.
Alyokhin is a man that would rather be an “armchair” man, “I was never brought up to do physical work and I’m an ‘armchair’ type by inclination” (146) however, he was stuck in a farming lifestyle in Sofino because he felt he owed it to his father to keep up their estate. He felt this way because his father merely put the family in debt to send Alyokhin to school, so he thought he owed it to his father to pay off the debts and keep up the estate. Alyokhin liked paying visits into town to break away from the laborious estate lifestyle to a bustling town lifestyle where most importantly, he got to break free to see Anna.
At dinner, Alyokhin and Luganovich were talking about a trial of an arson case in which Alyokhin highly believed that the convicted Jews were being convicted on no reasonable grounds but to clearly point the blame at someone. Alyokhin could not help but notice that Anna was moved and disgusted by the case. Alyokhin believed that Luganovich was a good man yet, a firm believer that when people are convicted they are guilty. Alyokhin saw the illusion that Anna was enjoying her life and did not pay another visit to the Luganvich’s until the
Alyokhin is a man that would rather be an “armchair” man, “I was never brought up to do physical work and I’m an ‘armchair’ type by inclination” (146) however, he was stuck in a farming lifestyle in Sofino because he felt he owed it to his father to keep up their estate. He felt this way because his father merely put the family in debt to send Alyokhin to school, so he thought he owed it to his father to pay off the debts and keep up the estate. Alyokhin liked paying visits into town to break away from the laborious estate lifestyle to a bustling town lifestyle where most importantly, he got to break free to see Anna.
At dinner, Alyokhin and Luganovich were talking about a trial of an arson case in which Alyokhin highly believed that the convicted Jews were being convicted on no reasonable grounds but to clearly point the blame at someone. Alyokhin could not help but notice that Anna was moved and disgusted by the case. Alyokhin believed that Luganovich was a good man yet, a firm believer that when people are convicted they are guilty. Alyokhin saw the illusion that Anna was enjoying her life and did not pay another visit to the Luganvich’s until the
Cited: Chekhov, Anton. “Concerning Love.” The Kiss And Other Stories. Ronald Wilks. England: London, 1982. 145-153.