A work of Art -Anton Chekhov
English Literature
A work of Art
Anton Chekhov
Summary/Plot
In the story "A work of Art" by Anton Chekhov, Sasha is grateful to Dr. Koshelkov for saving his life and as such presents him with a candelabra as a token of gratitude as he was unable to pay him through financial means.Sasha considers "the candelabra" as a work of art and an object of great value.His father who was running the business of antiques had left them with the candelabra when he died and it was kept as a precious souvenir by Sasha and his mother .Sasha believes that there is so much beauty and elegance to the candelabra that it fills one's soul and make one forget about everything earthly, in its beauty.
But for Dr. Koshelkov, though he agrees that the candelabra was a fine thing, he is telling Sasha that he is a family man and finds the candelabra as an inappropriate thing to display publicly in his office.According to him,to put such a phantasmagoria on the table would be defiling the whole flat..
To get rid of the candelabra Dr. Koshelkov is gifting it to his lawyer friend Uhov .He thinks it will be perfect for Uhov, as he was a bachelor and easy going person.But he was also not ready to accept it and doctor had to force him to keep it.After the doctor left, Uhov is gifting the candelabra to the comedian Sashkin,to get rid of it.Even Sashkin finds it as a horrid thing and so on advice of his hairdresser he sells it to an old woman who was doing the business of antique pieces.
The end of the story is also interesting .Author manages to add humour to the story by Sasha again, happily bringing a candelabra to the doctor. Sasha believes he has found the match to the candelabra and presents it to Dr. Koshelkov. Little does he realise that it is the same candelabra that he is presenting to the doctor for a second time.Sasha sets the candelabra on the table saying that he was very happy to find a pair for the candelabra , leaving the doctor unable to speak.
The Cask of Amontillado-Edgar Allan Poe New
The five boons of life-Mark Twain
Theme
The story "A work of art" by Anton Chekhov brings out the theme of perception of people of something in the society.In this story, " the candelabra" is perceived differently by different people.For example the perception of Sasha on the candelabra is entirely different from the perception held by other characters in the story. The author also brings out the theme of gratitude,, morality, independence, paralysis and social opinion.The candelabra a work of art is viewed different ways by two different kinds of people, namely ,Sasha and his mother and other characters in the story.When it comes to art, people are dependent on the opinion of society.The candelabra ,though a work of art, no one is ready to keep it because of the fear of social opinion.This may be important as Chekov may be using the candelabra to explore the theme of perception. The author is bringing out the fact how people are paralyzed by the routines of the society .All the three characters Dr. Koshelkov, Uhov and Shashkin were not ready to keep the candelabra only because of the fear of what other people thing about them.Their lives seem to be dictated by the social opinion of others.They are somewhat paralysed by the society, that none of them appear to have an independent voice unlike Sasha who can see the real beauty in the candelabra.By Sasha gifting the doctor with the most prized possession of their family, the theme of gratitude is brought out in the story. Thus the author has explored the themes of perception,gratitude,, morality, independence, paralysis and social opinion.
What i require from life-J.B.S.Haldane
Question and answers
Answer in two or three sentences
1.Why did Sasha give the candelabra to the doctor?
Sasha was the only son of his mother and was grateful to Dr. Koshelkov for saving his life and as such presents him with a candelabra as a token of gratitude as he was unable to pay him through financial means.
2.What is Sasha's perception of the candelabra?
Sasha considers "the candelabra" as a work of art and an object of great value.His father who was running the business of antiques had left them with the candelabra when he died and it was kept as a precious souvenir by Sasha and his mother.Sasha believes that there is so much beauty and elegance to the candelabra that it fills one's soul and make one forget about everything earthly, in its beauty.
3.How does the doctor perceive the candelabra?
For Dr. Koshelkov, though he agreed that the candelabra was a fine thing, he is telling Sasha that it is not quite for family reading as he is a family man and finds the candelabra as an inappropriate thing to display publicly in his office.According to him,to put such a phantasmagoria on the table would be defiling the whole flat.
4.What is the suggestion given by the hairdresser to Sashkin?
Sashkin's hairdresser advises him to sell the candelabra to the old woman living about there who buys antique bronzes. He tells Sashkin to go and enquire for Madam Smirnov as everyone knows her. Sashkin follows his advice and is selling the candelabra to the old woman.
5.Why did Sasha again give the second candelabra to the doctor?
Sasha came to the doctor's room holding in his hand the candelabra wrapped in newspaper.He is so happily saying that he has found the match to the candelabra and presents it to Dr. Koshelkov. Little does he realise that it is the same candelabra that he is presenting to the doctor for a second time.Sasha sets the candelabra on the table saying that he was very happy to find a pair for the candelabra.
Answer the following in a paragraph
1.Explain briefly the theme of the story"A work of Art"
or
How does the author brings out the theme of perception and gratitude in the story "A work of art"
The story "A work of art" by Anton Chekov brings out the theme of perception of people of something in the society.In this story,"the candelabra" is perceived differently by different people.This may be important as Chekov may be using the candelabra to explore the theme of perception.For example, the perception of Sasha on the candelabra is entirely different from the perception held by other characters in the story. The candelabra, a work of art, is viewed in different ways by two different kinds of people, namely ,Sasha and his mother and other characters in the story.For Dr. Koshelkov, though he agrees that the candelabra was a fine thing, he finds the candelabra as an inappropriate thing to display publicly in his office. All the three characters in the story Dr. Koshelkov, Uhov and Shashkin appreciated the beauty of candelabra but were not ready to keep the candelabra because of the fear of social opinion.Thus the perception of candelabra for them was different from Sasha's.
Also in the story,Sasha is grateful to Dr. Koshelkov for saving his life and as such presents him with a candelabra as a token of gratitude as he was unable to pay him money.Sasha considers "the candelabra" as a work of art and an object of great value.His father who was running the business of antiques had left them with the candelabra when he died and it was kept as a precious souvenir by Sasha and his mother .Sasha believes that there is so much beauty and elegance to the candelabra .By Sasha gifting the doctor with the most prized possession of their family, the theme of gratitude is brought out in the story.
2.Why didn't the four characters keep the candelabra with them in the story.
Sasha is grateful to Dr. Koshelkov for saving his life and as such presents him with a candelabra as a token of gratitude as he was unable to pay him money.So he couldn't keep the candelabra though it was kept as a precious souvenir by Sasha and his mother.
Dr. Koshelkov, though he agrees that the candelabra was a fine thing, he finds the candelabra as an inappropriate thing to display publicly in his office .The doctor thinks it is not quite for family reading as he is a family man .So he is getting rid of it by gifting it to his lawyer friend Uhov.
Uhov on seeing the candelabra was moved to incredible delight and started praising it .But after pouring out his ecstasies, he also doesn't want to keep it , as his mother and clients may come there at times and says he may be ashamed for his servants to see it. Uhov was worried about the opinion of his mother, clients and even servants and so he couldn't keep the candelabra and is giving it to Sashkin.
Sashakin,the comedian on seeing the candelabra is saying what he was supposed to do with the horrid thing as he lives in a private flat and as many actresses come to see him he felt it was not possible for him to keep it as it was not a photograph that he could put in his drawer. Sashkin was concerned about his public image as he was an actor so he was not ready to keep the candelabra and is selling it to an old woman dealing with antiques on advice of his hairdresser.
Thus all the four characters in the story were unable to keep the candelabra.
3.Write briefly your views on Sasha Smirnov and Dr. Koshelkov?
Sasha the boy in this story is a very humble, innocent and grateful person.He is so grateful to Dr. Koshelkov for saving his life and as such presents him with a candelabra as a token of gratitude as he was unable to pay him money.The candelabra he gifted to the doctor was something which he considered as a work of art and an object of great value.His father who was running the business of antiques had left them with the candelabra when he died and it was kept as a precious souvenir by Sasha and his mother. Sasha believes that there is so much beauty and elegance to the candelabra .By gifting the doctor with the most prized possession of their family, the theme of gratitude is brought out in the story.
Dr. Koshelkov is a kind hearted doctor which can be seen from the fact that he has saved Sasha's life even though Sasha had not paid him any money.But his perception about the candelabra is totally different from that of Sasha's.When Sasha is gifting him with the candelabra as a token of his gratitude, though he agrees with Sasha that the candelabra was a fine thing, he finds the candelabra as an inappropriate thing to display publicly in his office .The doctor thinks it is not quite for family reading as he is a family man .The doctor did not want to hurt the feelings of Sasha and his mother so he is accepting the gift and giving it to his friend Uhov, which shows the doctor is a kind hearted person but still worried about the opinion of the society.
2.What was the reaction of Uhov and Sashkin to the candelabra
Uhov on seeing the candelabra was moved to incredible delight and started praising it .After pouring out his ecstasies, he then looks timidly and tells the doctor that he should carry off his present as he cannot take it, as his mother and clients may come there at times.Also he tells the doctor that he may be ashamed for his servants to see it.But the doctor gesticulated more violently and went home gladly as he had somehow succeeded in getting the candelabra off his hands.So Uhov is getting rid of it by gifting it to Sashkin.
Sashakin,the comedian on seeing the candelabra shrugged his shoulders , flung up his hands and and is saying what he was supposed to do with the horrid thing as he lives in a private flat.As many actresses come to see him he felt it was not possible for him to keep it as it was not a photograph that he could put in his drawer.Then his hairdresser is advising him to sell it to the old woman who is doing antique business.He follows his advice and is selling the candelabra to the old woman.
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