Chekhov Shorts: The Proposal and The Bear

In The Proposal, a long time neighbor, Lomov, asks for Stepan’s daughter, Natalya’s, hand in marriage. After receiving the blessing, Natalya is asked to join them. Arguing the mundane, with Natalya, Lomov collapses from exhaustion. After the proposal is accepted their marriage begins with yet another argument.

In The Bear, Popova has shut herself up since her husband’s death. Unable to pay her debt, she is embroiled in an argument with the landlord; Smirnov, whom she calls, among other things, A Bear. In the end Smirnov falls in love with Popova and a final kiss is arrived at after much argument.