Three Sisters - Anton Chekhov

Summary

Anton Chekhov's "Three Sisters" (1901) is a four-act play that chronicles the lives of the Prozorov sisters—Olga, Masha, and Irina—and their brother, Andrei, as they grapple with the slow decay of their family's fortunes and their unfulfilled dreams in a provincial Russian town. A year after their father's death, the sisters yearn to return to Moscow, the vibrant city of their youth, believing it holds the key to a meaningful and intellectual life. However, they are continuously thwarted by circumstance, inertia, and their own character flaws. The play explores themes of dashed hopes, the search for purpose, the passage of time, and the futility of aspirations in a world often indifferent to individual desires, all set against the backdrop of a declining upper-class family and a shifting social landscape.

Book Sections

Section 1: Act One

It is the name-day of Irina, the youngest sister. The family and their guests celebrate in the drawing-room of the Prozorovs' house. It has been a year since the death of their father, a general, and the family is still living in a provincial town, yearning to return to Moscow, which they remember as a place of culture and intellectual stimulation. Olga, the eldest, is a teacher who is overwhelmed by her work. Masha, the middle sister, is married to Fyodor Kulygin, a well-meaning but dull schoolmaster, and feels trapped in a loveless marriage. Irina, the youngest, is full of youthful optimism and believes work will give her life meaning. Various officers from the local military garrison, who are frequent guests, also attend the celebration, contributing to the lively but ultimately melancholic atmosphere. Among them are Lieutenant-Colonel Vershinin, a married man with two children who is fond of philosophical musings, and Baron Tuzenbach, who is in love with Irina. Their brother, Andrei, is a promising scholar but is starting to fall for Natalya Ivanovna (Natasha), a local girl whom his sisters deem common.

Character	Characteristics	Motivations
Olga Sergeyevna Prozorova	Eldest sister, a teacher, responsible, weary, prone to crying.	Dreams of returning to Moscow, but is burdened by her responsibilities and a sense of resignation. Seeks comfort and order.
Masha Sergeyevna Prozorova	Middle sister, wears black, melancholic, intelligent, artistic, cynical.	Feels trapped and unfulfilled in her marriage to Kulygin. Yearns for intellectual stimulation and a passionate connection.
Irina Sergeyevna Prozorova	Youngest sister, optimistic, energetic, idealistic, believes in hard work.	Dreams of returning to Moscow, where she believes she will find love and a meaningful existence through work.
Andrei Sergeyevich Prozorov	Brother of the sisters, scholarly, once ambitious, talented musician, weak-willed.	Initially motivated by academic ambition and a desire to contribute to the university, but succumbs to inertia and marries Natasha.
Natalya Ivanovna (Natasha)	Andrei's fiancée/wife, seemingly shy at first, later becomes domineering, common, materialistic.	Seeks social advancement and control over the Prozorov household and its finances. Driven by self-interest and a desire for comfort.
Fyodor Ilyich Kulygin	Masha's husband, schoolmaster, kind, pedantic, a bit foolish, repeats phrases.	Loves Masha despite her indifference. Seeks domestic harmony and routine.
Lieutenant-Colonel Aleksandr Ignatyevich Vershinin	Artillery battery commander, philosophical, eloquent, melancholic, unhappily married.	Seeks intellectual companionship and a sense of purpose through his philosophical ideas about the future, despite his personal unhappiness.
Baron Nikolay Lvovich Tuzenbach	Lieutenant, a noble, idealistic, sensitive, serious.	Deeply in love with Irina, genuinely believes in hard work and a better future. Wants to earn a living through labor and marry Irina.
Staff Doctor Ivan Romanovich Chebutykin	Elderly military doctor, nostalgic, forgetful, alcoholic, reads newspapers constantly.	Dwells on the past, particularly his affection for the sisters' mother. Retreats into alcohol and trivia to avoid confronting his own inadequacy and the meaninglessness of life.
Second Lieutenant Aleksey Petrovich Fedotik	An officer, cheerful, amateur photographer, enthusiastic.	Enjoys life and the company of the Prozorovs.
Second Lieutenant Vladimir Karlovich Rode	An officer, enthusiastic, physically fit.	Enjoys life and the company of the Prozorovs.
Ferapont Spiridonich	An old watchman from the district council, hard of hearing.	Performs his duties, brings papers to Andrei.
Anfisa	The elderly nurse/maid, devoted to the family.	Loyal to the Prozorov sisters, especially Olga.

Section 2: Act Two

Two years later. It is Maslenitsa (Shrovetide). The family gathers in the living room, waiting for guests. Andrei has married Natasha, and they now have a child, Bobik, and another on the way. Natasha's influence has grown; she has slowly taken over the house, making changes, dismissing servants, and even planning to take over the drawing-room for her children. Andrei has become a secretary to the local council, a position he despises, and has mortgaged the house without his sisters' knowledge, draining their family resources. Masha and Vershinin have developed a strong, unspoken affection for each other. Irina, still yearning for work, has taken a job at the telegraph office, but finds it monotonous and unfulfilling. Tuzenbach continues to declare his love for Irina, offering to work alongside her. Chebutykin's drinking has worsened, and his medical skills have deteriorated. The dream of Moscow seems more distant than ever, replaced by the mundane reality of their provincial lives and Natasha's encroaching dominance. The act ends with a sense of growing despair and the suppression of the sisters' plans.

Section 3: Act Three

It is a year later. The house is in chaos due to a fire that has ravaged the town, and many displaced people are being sheltered by the Prozorovs. This act reveals the extent of Natasha's tyranny; she uses the fire as an excuse to further assert her authority, even attempting to evict the elderly nurse, Anfisa, from the house. Olga, now headmistress of the girls' high school, is exhausted and overwhelmed. Masha and Vershinin's affair is more apparent, bringing a fleeting happiness to Masha but intensifying her despair about her trapped life. Irina is completely disillusioned with work, feeling that it has brought her no joy or meaning. She breaks down, admitting her unhappiness and her inability to find true love. Andrei confronts his failures, confessing to mortgaging the house and admitting his disappointment with his own life and his marriage to Natasha. Chebutykin, now completely lost to drink, mishandles a patient, further highlighting his decay. The dream of Moscow has become a painful illusion. Irina, in desperation, accepts Tuzenbach's proposal of marriage, seeing it as her last chance to escape the town and find purpose.

Section 4: Act Four

Some time later, the military battery is preparing to leave the town permanently. The farewells are bittersweet. The soldiers, including Vershinin, Tuzenbach, and Chebutykin, are packing up. Masha is heartbroken to say goodbye to Vershinin, her only source of joy and intellectual connection. Their parting is poignant and tearful. Irina is preparing to leave with Tuzenbach to start a new life and a new job, away from the provincial town. However, a duel takes place offstage between Tuzenbach and Solyony, another officer who is also in love with Irina and has threatened Tuzenbach throughout the play. Tuzenbach is killed. The news devastates Irina, crushing her final hope for escape and a meaningful future. Olga and Masha try to comfort her, but their own futures remain bleak. The sisters are left alone in their decaying house, contemplating their lost dreams and the passage of time. They find a small measure of comfort in each other and the shared belief that, despite their suffering, life will somehow continue and perhaps one day bring purpose.

Literary Genre

"Three Sisters" is a drama, specifically a tragicomedy. Chekhov himself often referred to his plays as comedies, though they are deeply melancholic and deal with serious themes of despair, unfulfilled potential, and social decline. The comedic elements often stem from human foibles, absurd situations, and the triviality of some characters' concerns amidst profound suffering.

Author's Data

Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (1860–1904) was a Russian playwright and short-story writer who is considered to be one of the greatest writers of short fiction in history. Born in Taganrog, Russia, he trained as a physician, a profession he practiced throughout most of his literary career, stating, "Medicine is my lawful wife, and literature is my mistress." Chekhov's dramatic works include "The Seagull," "Uncle Vanya," "Three Sisters," and "The Cherry Orchard." These plays revolutionized theatre, moving away from conventional dramatic action to a more nuanced focus on mood, atmosphere, and the internal lives of characters. His writing is characterized by its realism, psychological depth, and compassionate portrayal of human beings struggling with the mundane and the profound aspects of life. He often explored themes of social change, the decline of the aristocracy, the search for meaning, and the human capacity for both hope and despair. He died of tuberculosis at the age of 44.

Key Themes

The central "moral" or rather, the key themes, of "Three Sisters" include:

• The futility of aspirations and unfulfilled dreams: The sisters continually yearn for Moscow, believing it will bring them happiness and purpose, but their inaction and external circumstances prevent them from achieving their goal.
• The passage of time and inertia: The play vividly portrays the slow, monotonous decay of life in a provincial town, where time seems to slip away without meaningful change, leading to resignation and despair.
• The search for meaning and purpose: The characters grapple with questions of existence, work, and their place in the world, often failing to find satisfactory answers.
• The decline of the old aristocracy and the rise of a new, pragmatic class: The Prozorovs represent the fading intellectual and aristocratic class, while Natasha embodies the rising, more materialistic and practical class that ultimately overtakes them.
• Love and loneliness: Characters experience various forms of love—unrequited, adulterous, passionate, mundane—often leading to heartbreak or a deeper sense of isolation.

Curiosities

• Chekhov's classification as a comedy: Despite its profound sadness, Chekhov insisted "Three Sisters" was a comedy. This reflects his nuanced view of life, where tragedy and comedy are inextricably intertwined, and human suffering often appears absurd from a distance. Early audiences and directors often struggled with this classification, leading to a long history of varied interpretations.
• The "Moscow" leitmotif: The repeated mention of Moscow is not just a geographical longing but a symbolic yearning for a better, more meaningful life, intellectual stimulation, and cultural vibrancy that the provincial town lacks. It represents an ideal that is always out of reach.
• Lack of direct dramatic action: Unlike traditional plays of the era, "Three Sisters" focuses more on mood, atmosphere, internal conflict, and the subtle interactions between characters rather than a strong, linear plot with clear resolutions. The "action" is often psychological and emotional.
• Impact on modern theatre: Chekhov's realistic portrayal of everyday life and his focus on subtext and the inner lives of characters had a profound influence on 20th-century theatre, particularly on method acting and naturalistic drama. The Moscow Art Theatre, founded by Konstantin Stanislavski, was instrumental in bringing Chekhov's plays to life.
• Autobiographical elements: Chekhov himself grew up in a provincial town and spent time in Moscow, understanding the longing for the city's intellectual life. His experiences as a doctor also informed his sympathetic portrayal of suffering and human weakness.