The Cherry OrchardAnton Chekhov

Dec., 11th , 20138-9: 20 AM

Course Title: Introduction to LiteratureCourse Code & NO.: LANE 341Course Credit Hrs.: 3 per weekLevel: 5th Level

Instructor: Dr. Noora Al-MalkiCredits of images and online content are to their original owners.

Session Content

- Unit Learning Outcomes- Introduction to the play- Plot- Setting & Symbolism

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Unit Objective:

In this lecture, we are going to read The Cherry Orchard by the Russian playwright, Anton Chekhov. We are going to reflect on the social and cultural changes that are discussed in the play. Themes, conflicts, and style will be discussed as well.

Learning Outcomes:

Upon completion of this unit, students will be able to:-Analyze The Cherry Orchard by the Russian playwright, Anton Chekhov-Reflect on the social and cultural and social themes that inform the play.

Introduction

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-Written during the last years of Chekhov’s life 1904- 4- act play- Comedy vs. tragedy “not a drama but a comedy, in places almost a farce.”- Russia’s decaying upper class- the social climate of Russia at the beginning of the 20th century upheaval - inability to adaptQ: Discuss the major theme of The Cherry Orchard by Chekhov

Plot

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-The Cherry Orchard presents a dilemma: The Ranevskaya family, which includes landowner Lyuboff (Lyuba) Andreena Ranevskaya, her brother Gayev, daughter Anya, and adopted daughter Varya, faces two alternatives that it finds equally unacceptable: either to lose the estate on the auction block because of its unpaid mortgage, or to destroy its uniqueness by chopping down its cherry trees and razing the residence to replace it with summer cottages. The second option, which will be exercised by the businessman who buys the orchard at auction, Yermolay Alexeevich Lopahin, offers what the gentry considers a vulgar economic solution at the expense of its cherished values of beauty and inspiration. In this situation, Mme Ranevskaya chooses not to act, thereby forfeiting the property.

Setting

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Setting

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Madame Ranevsky’s estate is located somewhere in the provinces of central Russia. Three acts of the play take place in her large house. Act 1 is set in what was once the nursery, a large, high-ceilinged room which has become an informal meeting place. The second act is set in a field not far from the house, near an old chapel. The third act reveals the true opulence of the house: Its drawing room with a chandelier is in the foreground, and dancing couples can be seen in the ballroom through arches at the rear. Act 4 returns to the nursery, now stripped of its decorations and ready to be vacated by Madame Ranevsky and her family. Madame Ranevsky’s world is doomed by economic and social forces usually identified with offstage places. A station is nearby, from which characters go to Russian cities like Kharkov and Moscow. Madame Ranevsky’s problems are made acute by her irresponsibilities with both men and money, both of which are associated with Paris.

The Cherry orchardIt is the most important part of the setting of three of these acts is the visible symbol of the fragile and doomed beauty of Madame Ranevsky’s world, the cherry orchard itself. It is revealed in all its blooming spring beauty through the large, tall windows in act 1. In the next act, it is visible at the edge of the field. It can be seen again in the desolation of act 4, denuded now of its blossoms because it is October.

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Have a super day….