Chekhov's Heartache Analysis 2vo6b

Literary Analysis of “Heartache” by Anton Chekhov In Heartache, Anton Chekhov’s short story about a man reeling from the untimely lo ss of his son, the wounds that grief leaves can only be eased by empathy and a s ympathetic ear, but neither can be found in self-absorbed people who cannot see beyond themselves. As melancholic cab driver Iona, and his horse make their way through a single bleak night in Chekhov’s pre-Revolutionary Russian tale, the natu re of grief and humanity are examined. The use of imagery, symbolism, and tone d eepen the story’s meaning and evoke both its tragedy and its hope. Heartache begins with vivid imagery that brings a strong image of the story’s worl d from the first paragraph. The “large, wet flakes of snow … customary grey scenes … unceasing din … rushing people [and] evening darkness descending on the city” (1) re flect the cab driver’s dismal and wintry life, and paint a picture of the bustling , frigid world he lives in. The reiteration of the din, the bustle, and the “crowd surging along both sides of the street” (3) sets up the theme: out of all the peo ple in the city, none have the patience or the comion to hear Iona out when he searches for someone to share his grief with. Despite the repeated mentions o f human presence, Chekhov’s dreary imagery evokes an empty feeling that holds a mi rror to the protagonist’s chronic and tragic loneliness. By describing Iona as “all white as a ghost [and] hunched over as a living body can be” and his horse as “motio nless [and] stick-like … like a penny gingerbread horse” (1), the two are likened to otherworldly creatures; too pale, bent out of shape, and angular to be real. Th eir physical characteristics distance them figuratively from the rest of the wor ld around them as well as literally. Chekhov’s imagery both conveys the dark side of a bustling, busy society — one filled with icy, self-absorbed, and unsympatheti c people — and the alienation that grief and emotional vulnerability brings Iona. Though many elements in Heartache have deeper and figurative meanings, Iona’s hors e is the strongest symbol. Heartache reflects human nature in stages of grief an d withdrawal as well as in its selfish and cruel forms. However, redemption, and the answer to Iona’s longing, is found in the only non-human character in the sto ry: the horse. Every other character besides Iona is by turn scornful, abusive, and uncaring. The horse is everything these men are not: quiet; loyal, despite t heir lack of food and the harsh climate that coats them both in snow for hours o n end; and gentle. From the first paragraph she is personified, said to be “in all probability … sunk in thought” (1), given the human trait of thoughtfulness. Later, it is “as if she has understood [Iona’s] thought” (3); she is the one character in th e story with the ability to understand him. In the end, at last, “the nag chews, l istens, and breathes on the hands of her master” (4) in the ultimate gesture of sy mpathy and submission. In his horse, Iona discovers what he could not find in hi s engers, doorkeepers, or fellow drivers. More than a reflection of animal l oyalty, the horse symbolizes the soft and caring side of living beings; she poss esses that which is missing from the city’s impatient and crude, self-centered inh abitants. The horse is the answer to not only one lonely man’s longing for affecti on in the wake of tragedy, but the docile and comionate answer to an unfeeli ng and cold society, and she therefore becomes a symbol of hope as well. In Heartache, Chekhov uses tone to reinforce his theme as well as character and setting. Throughout the first half of the story, the narration is straightforwar d, its tone too simple and indifferent for the sorrowful content. Despite the im mediacy of present tense, the narration is detached through Chekhov’s use of filte ring. Readers are told that “in all probability” the horse is deep in thought; Iona fidgets “as if on pins and needles”; and “apparently he wants to say something” (1). The narration makes guesses, and acts more as an observer of Iona than his own voic e and thoughts told in the third person. The idea of the story being told by an uncertain but keen observer, clashes with the unobservant, careless characters i n Iona’s life. Iona’s reactions and thoughts too clash with the circumstances to whi ch he is subjected. Even subjected to verbal and physical abuse by the second pa

ssenger in his cab, when he “hears more than feels the thud of a blow on [his] nec k” (3) he laughs it off, grateful that for any human interaction. When he is alone again, however, halfway through the story, he surrenders to his heartache, and the tone shifts dramatically. The feeling “which had eased for a while appears aga in and rends [his] breast with even greater force”, and the “vast, boundless heartac he” (3) within him surges. The change in tone from detached to honest reflects Ion a’s own changing internal grieving process, and hints, by the end, that he is clos e to the final stage: acceptance. With such dark subject matter, Chekhov’s tone co uld have been miserable and self-pitying throughout, but his shifting use of it instead portrays the nature and progression of grief much more honestly. Throughout Heartache, Anton Chekhov focuses less on a typical story structure an d more on the intricacies of humanity: the aftereffects of unspeakable personal tragedy, the harshness of men, the process of recovery, and the salvation that c an be found through a willing listening ear. Though Iona’s grief could not be alle viated through self-absorbed, rushed people, his ission of pain and the conne ction between him and his horse set him on course to recovery. Through imagery, symbol, and tone Chekhov creates a simple yet strong portrait of one man’s night t hat becomes universal through relevant portrayals of common emotions and humanki nd. English essay outline & rough work “Heartache” by Anton Chekhov theme:  the wounds that grief leaves can be eased by empathy and a sympathetic e ar, but neither can be found in people who cannot see beyond themselves point 1: symbol the horse is a symbol of what the world should ideally be like and what it is re ally like. the horse is constant, loyal, docile, and listens, while every other human in the story is curt, cruel, ignores the cabby, and leaves in the end.  in a story that reflects the nature of humanity (both in its grieving/vulnerable , and selfish/self-absorbed states) redemption comes as something inhuman point 2: imagery cold, bleak, wintry — provides physical problem (Iona and his horse are suffering in it) and a figurative reflection of Iona’s cold, gray, bleak life in the afterma th of his son’s death both Iona & horse are described as non living things, a ghost and gingerbread pe nny horse. they are shown as not being real which emphasizes how grief changes t hem and also how they are ‘othered’/alienated from the rest of society the city imagery is crowded & bustling with people but even in all those people Iona can’t find just one who will listen —> because they’re all crowded & bustling and too busy, impatient, and/or self-absorbed to care. relates back to theme point 3: tone the story is called “Heartache” (aka Misery or The Lament in other translations) but until about the 1/2way or 3/4 mark the tone is not self pitying. instead it is quite indifferent and detached (Chekhov uses ‘filter words’ e.g. ‘it appeared,’ ‘he seemed’ which gives it an indecisive and observer-type tone) the tone shifts to more honest, lamenting, sad, and immersive halfway through pa ge 3 when Iona is abandoned by his second set of engers (including abusive h unchback but Iona was happy for any kind of human /interaction) shift in tone mirror his grieving process, the tone changes as Iona moves from b eing almost in denial to being honest about his depression, and coming close to final stage of acceptance conclusion relate to broader point: Chekhov’s story is simple & about a single man’s sorrows an d struggles on one single night, but he makes a small event larger and universal through his examination of the common topics of grief/loss & the need for inter personal connection