The Lady with the Dog by Anton Chekhov

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Literary Analysis on the Lady with the Dog
Authored by Antony Chekhov, the ‘lady with the dog’ is a famous and widely circulated short story that describes a love affair between two characters who are married to other people. The short story makes use of a Russian banker named Gurov and a young lady named Anna Sergeyevna who upon meeting while in vacation in Yalta starts an adulterous love affair. The lady with the dog is systematically split into four parts whereby the first part presents the initial meeting in Yalta while the second part describes the start of the love affair between Gurov and Anna while in Yalta. The Gurov’s return to Moscow is presented in the third section while The last section highlights instances of Anna’s visit to Moscow. The author uses the different setting in the narration of this short story hence distorting the typical story structure. It is filled with a tremendous change of setting that ultimately affects the characters’ lives. This paper, therefore, aims at exploring the literary analysis of the short story ‘the lady with the dog’ by Antony check highlights the character development, techniques employed in writing, an analysis of the characters, plot, and setting.
Dmitri Gurov is a discontented married man though he appears as someone who lives an ordinarily live. He has children and a wife who most of the times are despised as he thinks of her as unintelligent and inelegant. Dimitri is described to have been intrigued by Anna on her appearance.

At the seafront of Yalta, the scene of this young lady walking alone with her dog fascinates Gurov who immediately develops liking and attraction to her. The first-day instance triggers his love for Anna Sergeyevna hence facilitating the growth of a love affair with her. The author notes that the Dmitri thought of Anna as any other woman in the initial stage but eventually came to the realization that Anna was a different the as she made him realize who he was. Anna Sergeyevna, on the other hand, is a young lady who is described as naïve. She is married to a flunkey government official though she is unhappy with the marriage just like Dmitri. Anna develops her love for Dmitri and finally sleeps with him. The author indicates that she felt guilty of sleeping with Dmitri, but later she realizes her enduring love she had for him. Following this, the two characters planned to meet again even after partying ways at Yalta.
The short story highlights the element of infidelity and creates curiosity among its audiences. The author narrates a story of unfaithful Dmitri and his ambition to pursue Anna Sergeyevna. It commences with the first encounters of Dmitri at the seaside where he seduces her just like other women he had before. Upon interaction with Anna at the resort in Yalta, he realizes that Anna was of a different kind from other women he had met. Their first sexual encounter makes Anna feel guilty, and this further softens Dmitri’s attitude toward her thus facilitating the growth of a genuine and valid relationship. The realization of true feelings among the two makes them meet again even after partying ways at Yalta.
Both Gurov and Anna continue to have various encounters that reveal their emotions towards each other. Gurov came to the realization that Anna held similar feelings for him at the theater production when he surprised her. Anna begs Gurov to return to Moscow, and this creates room for several visits that weigh them down. The story ends with unresolved issues among the couples and indicates that both Gurov and Anna had a realization of a long relationship journey they had to encounter.
An insight into Antony Chekhov’s short story reveals various themes in human life all along its narration. The most basic ideas presented in the initial stages are those of infidelity, disloyalty, and sin as the characters was engaging in activities against the societal and marital expectations. However, a deeper analysis reveals that the author aimed at communicating real life instances that are more than just about morality. The author describes Dmitri as a man who never loved his family and despised his wife thus diminishing her value in the household. Dimitri is a person who disrespected women and considered them as belonging to the lower race despite having so many affairs with them. Anna too despised her marriage love and hated her husband revealing her unhappiness for the marriage. Their description of the marriage was a mistake and deceiving to their partners.
At the end of the story, the moral corruption depicted by the characters reveals the realities in regular life instances. The author shows the adverse effects of marrying the wrong people and indicates that most couples deceive each other and engage in activities that corrupt their moral nature. Antony Chekhov holds a realistic view of morality with a different perspective. Although the author doesn’t encourage adultery, he points out that such instances happen in daily life and that we must deal with them. The lady with the dog is presented with a realistic yet not judgmental attitude towards life. It is filled with many possibilities and leaves the audience with an open-ended conclusion. This ambiguous instance creates room for the readers to decide and think about the events that follow the characters. The readers further note the consequences of a deceiving marriage and the rewards of accepting and realizing oneself.