Analysis of Gooseberries by Anton Chekhov

             According to Aristotle, happiness is the highest good, being a realization and perfect practice of virtue, which some can attain, while others have little or none of it... Happiness could mean many things to different people, depending on one's beliefs and values. Still, the greatest happiness for most is achieving one's dreams and aspirations. What price, if any, is one willing to pay for happiness? Can an individual be happy, however, when other human beings suffer? Can the ability "to give" and share make a person happier? These and some other questions and ideas are addressed in the story "Gooseberries" by Anton Chekhov. (A Pocketful of Prose, Vol. I)
             The narrator, Ivan Ivanich, talks about his brother, Nikolai, who was an office clerk. Nikolai worked very hard, saved every cent, married an ugly, wealthy widow. "He lived thriftily, never ate or drank his fill, dressed anyhow, like a beggar, and saved up all his money in a bank"(177). All this, for just one dream, one aspiration – country life. But how much is one willing to sacrifice in order to achieve a dream? "The years passed... he was over forty, and was still reading advertisements in papers, and saving up" (177). Finally, five years after his wife's death, Nikolai started to look for an estate.
             Many years later, the narrator visits his brother. "He was no longer the poor, timid clerk, but a true proprietor, a gentleman" (178). He now seemed to be a very happy and, maybe, a little bit of an arrogant man. Nikolai was very pleased with the gooseberries, which he had wanted to grow his entire life, and now he could, at last, taste the fruits. "I saw before me a really happy man, one whose dearest wish had come true..." (179). In this story, gooseberries symbolize Nikolai's achievement. Even though the berries may seem delicious at first, later the taste becomes bitter and sour. The same ...

More Essays:

APA     MLA     Chicago
Analysis of Gooseberries by Anton Chekhov. (1969, December 31). In MegaEssays.com. Retrieved 08:38, March 29, 2024, from https://www.megaessays.com/viewpaper/83167.html