The Student - Anton Chekhov

     "The Student" by Anton Chekov

     For me there are two kinds of short stories: those that leave me amused and those that leave me puzzled. The best of the first type makes me gently smile and that of the second type prods me to search the hidden revelations I failed to catch. “The Student”, however, was neither, although closer to the second type. Although the succinct writing style of Chekov, both descriptive and sentimental, impressed me, the conclusion - so protruding and lacking in subtlety - evaporated in me the desire to dig deeper into the piece.

     But indeed, like all renowned pieces, “The Student” had its depth -and to my surprise-, in the very portion that I disliked instantaneously: the conclusion. The ending reveals the revelation Ivan experiences, which is basically that the past is linked with the present. Why he considers this so marvelous is not stated explicitly. But readers imply that for a son of a sacristan and a student of the clerical academy, eliciting tears from two women by recounting a biblical story would empower him as a religious figure and give him confidence over how profoundly he can impact other people. 

     However, “the inexpressible sweet expectation of happiness” that takes his possession little by little is far from being optimistic. Beneath the facade of bliss lies Chekhov’s deliberate cynicism that aims to question the value of Ivan’s revelation. Chekhov’s philosophy may be a hint as to why. Chekhov, in one of his letter to Suvorin, talks about how it is the artist’s only job to state a problem correctly, rather than giving an answer. This philosophy manifests in “The Student” through his cynicism; if the story were meant to be optimistic, it would render the whole story as a simple answer that is provide in the conclusion. But Chekhov leaves various hints inside the story for one to reasonably claim that the authorial perspective is different from Ivan’s. In other words, what Ivan experiences is not a reflection of what Chekhov feels. 

     Reading the story numerous times allows one to easily spot the cynicism. In the final paragraph that describes Ivan’s response to his revelation, Chekhov chooses to interpose and inform the readers Ivan’s age, twenty-two. While this may be a simple elaboration on the “feeling of youth, health, and vigour”, combined with Ivan’s arrogance manifested through his portrayal of Lukerya as stupid, the unnecessary mention of his age hints that the revelation is as young and immature as himself. The revelation itself is very ironic because at the beginning of the story, he thinks that the cold wind that “destroys the order and harmony of things” must have also blown in the days of Rurik and in the time of Ivan the Terrible and Peter. So in a sense, Ivan has realized from the start that the past is linked with the present. And when  Furthermore, the last sentence describes Ivan’s view of life as being “enchanting, marvelous, and full of lofty meaning.” The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines lofty to mean either very high or showing the insulting attitude of people who think that they are better, smarter, or more important. To describe life with high meaning is awkward, so Chekov probably meant to underscore the arrogance that Ivan’s revelation was based on, and hence the hastiness. 

     So the final question: Did Chekov mean to be pessimistic? I would say no. As Chekov often cited the piece as a defense against the accusation of pessimism, the piece is both cynical and un-pessimistic because in the end, while Ivan’s revelation may be delusional and short-lived, Ivan experiences epiphany. What Chekov ultimately wanted to convey through the piece is unclear. But I middy suggest that the story illustrates how one can overcome despair and misery - described in the opening through the weather - by searching for what shines in the gloomy surroundings, which was the widow’s garden for Ivan. One’s ability to alter his have been a valuable message for Chekov, who himself went through economic hardships when young and later in his life emphasized heavily with the local, poor peasants.