"<...> He was remarkable for always wearing goloshes and a warm wadded coat, and carrying an umbrella even in the very finest weather. And his umbrella was in a case, and his watch was in a case made of grey chamois leather, and when he took out his penknife to sharpen his pencil, his penknife, too, was in a little case; and his face seemed to be in a case too, because he always hid it in his turned-up collar. He wore dark spectacles and flannel vests, stuffed up his ears with cotton-wool, and when he got into a cab always told the driver to put up the hood. <...>"
A. P. Chekhov, The Man in a Case, page 1
- Very often authors use different symbols to show the importance of what they are talking about, don't you think Ms. Reason?- And what will happen if I don't understand that, don't understand the meaning?
- Well, sometimes the symbol is obvious, sometimes rather hard to spot; however, in my opinion, it is very interesting to really get what the author wanted to say. For example, I don't think that the appearance of the bicycle is a coincidence in Chekhov's "The Man in a Case".
- Bicycle is just the bicycle. I don't think that it has much meaning to it.- Hmmm... I can't agree. I think the bicycle is the symbol of the progress, of the movement forward. Byelinkov is " the man in a case", who doesn't want to move forward, who always tries to make "a case" that will protect him of outside influence. That's why he can't ride the bicycle and falls down.
- Ok, I got this part. Then, following your logic, Varinka is the symbol of progress, isn't she?
- I don't think that she is the symbol of progress, but she is more open to the people, to the future. I can even say that she is more alive. She wants to live, wants changes in her life. And she definitely doesn't want to live in the case.
- And the bicycle?
- She says to Byelinkov that it was rather easy for her to ride it. The bicycle is the symbol of the change. She is not afraid of changes - she can ride the bicycle.
- Oh, I see. All of this makes sense now. It even shows the characters deeper, gives more meaning to them.
Henry: That makes sense. I think that the bicycle represents change or progress. Varinka can ride the bicycle but Byelinkov can't. Varinka is open to change, whereas Byelinkov wants everything to stay the same.
ReplyDeleteVetinari: I commend you for your excellent analysis. However, in my considerable experience people only want changes in their lives when they are truly dissatisfied and unhappy with what they have. The most interesting question we can ask then is "Why does Varinka want change? i.e. What is she unhappy about or dissatisfied with?