Genre
Drama, Tragedy
Language
Russian translated into English
Setting and Context
A small town in Russia in the late 1800s
Narrator and Point of View
No narrator.
Tone and Mood
Tragic, melancholy, at times lighthearted; Existential, Philosophical, Reflective
Protagonist and Antagonist
Irina, Masha, and Olga are the protagonists; Solyony and Natasha are the antagonists.
Major Conflict
The major conflict is more of an existential one that a plot one. The characters long to find meaning in their lives, but they are disappointed in life. Perhaps the most concrete conflict in the play is the sisters' desire to return to an urban life in Moscow, and their disappointment in not being able to do so.
Climax
The climax of the play occurs when the characters learn of Tusenbach's death, after the soldiers have finally taken their leave of the town.
Foreshadowing
Solyony says "I will have no successful rivals" in relation to his love for Irina, which foreshadows the fact that will eventually kill Tusenbach, his main romantic rival for Irina's affections.
Understatement
Allusions
Masha quotes Pushkin. Allusions are made to Gogol, the Lermontovs, and other works of literature.
Imagery
We get some descriptions of the house in the stage directions, and Chekhov also outlines the appearances and clothing of the sisters. For instance, Masha is almost always wearing black.
Paradox
The characters are stultified by their own feelings of powerlessness, caught in a paradoxical bind between their desire to influence the world around them and an inability to change their circumstance or go after what they want.
Parallelism
Personification
The trees are personified by Tusenbach before he goes off to the duel. He talks about how when he dies, he will still be part of the trees. In the next scene, Natasha talks about how she wants to cut the trees down, and the image of Tusenbach as being personified by the trees makes Natasha's impulse seem all the more vulgar.
