Agafya suddenly jumped up, shook her head, and with a bold step went towards her husband. She had evidently plucked up her courage and made up her mind.
This quote serves to end the story altogether, giving it a feel of an open ending as the reader is forced to wonder what will happen to her. It also adds some characterization to Agafya herself, though she arguably plays a smaller role in the overall themes of the narrative. Perhaps this is a moment of realization for her that she is ready to break free from a loveless marriage. Perhaps it is a different realization that she cannot change a mistake she has made and will accept her fate no matter what happens. Either way, there is a clear distinction between her shameful wade through the water and the confident stride she assumes once she accepts her fate.
[Savka's] features were large, but his face was open, soft, and expressive as a woman’s.
Savka is likened to a woman in this quote, though it is clearly stated Savka “despises” women. This gives the reader insight into Savka’s character; perhaps he does not like the company of women because they convey their emotions openly in a similar manner to himself, yet, as the character generalizes about women, they are incapable of listening to others as he is so acutely able to do according to the narrator.
“What’s fun for the cat is tears for the mouse…”
This quote reveals to the reader how Savka feels used by the women who throw themselves at him. He states that women are like cats earlier, causing the audience assume that he must be the mouse that the “cats” play with. He is saddened that all women see in him is someone to play with rather than have an intellectual, thought-provoking conversation like he does with the narrator early on, only adding to his hatred against the gender.
