Chekhov's play "The Cherry Orchard," contains a passage at the end of Act Two, pages 350-351, that occurs between Anya and Trofimov, which reveals several important elements of the play. Prior to this, Mrs. Ranevsky and her daughters have returned to their family home that was once a functioning cherry orchard. They have been faced with the news that unless they can come up with a way to make it into a source of money, it will be sold at auction. The passage between Anya and Trofimov is a dialogue on the consequences of the Ranevsky family moving past the days of the orchard. Following this passage, the family hosts a ball, ignoring the fact that they are about to lose their home. During the ball, they receive the news that the orchard has been sold to Lopakhin, a merchant that has risen from the serfs. In the end, the Ranevsky's leave the orchard with a feeling of hope for their future. The passage between Anya and Trofimov in Act Two, provides us with the play's theme of freedom, in addition to showing Chekhov's technique of using thematic speeches to deliver the play's message, and providing an explanation of the cherry orchard as a symbol.
             One of the main themes in the play is individual freedom. The time period is just after the serfs have gained their independence in Russia and the cherry orchard that was run similar to a plantation in the South, is a relic of that time. Trofimov tells Anya "To possess living souls- that has corrupted all of you, those who lived before and you who are living now, so that your mother, you, your uncle, no longer perceive that you are living in debt, at someone else's expense," explaining how the orchard has deprived her family of their freedom. Owning the orchard is like still owning the serfs who worked the orchard through out history. Trofimov suggests that, "If you have the keys of the household, throw them into the well and go. Be as free as the wind." This passage suggests how the economic...