‘The Proposal’ by Anton Chekhov – Questions and Answers - Ebadul Sir
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Ø It
is Russian Ø The
Proposal is a one act play. Ø The
hero of the play is Lomov. Ø Natalya
is the daughter of Chubukov. Ø Natalya’s
age is 25. Ø The
play takes place at Chukukov’s country – house. Ø Chubukov
is a land- owner. Ø Chubukov
thinks that Lomov has come to him to borrow money. Ø Lomov
had gone there to ask for Natalya’s hand. Ø Lomov’s
full name is Ivan Vassilevitch. Ø The
name of the land over which the argument started between Ivan Vassilevitch
and Natalya is Oxen Meadows. Ø Oxen
Meadows is between birchwoods and Burnt Marsh. Ø The
peasants belonging to Natalya’s father’s grandfather had the free use of the meadows for 40years. Ø The
meadow is about 5 dessiatins. Ø The
name of the Ivan’s dog is Guess. Ø Ivan’s
dog has gone lame. Ø Natalya’s
dog is Squeezer is the son of Harness and Chisels. Ø Chubukov’s
full name is Stepan Stepanovitch Chubukov. Ø The
meadows is cost of 300 roubles. Ø The
another name of this play is ‘The Marriage Proposal’ Ø The
play begins in a drawing room in Chubukov’s house. Ø Lomov
wore a dress- jacket and white glubs. Ø The age of Lomov is 35. Ø The
owner of the threshing – machine is Natalya. Ø Lomov
bought Guess from Mironov for 125 roubles. Ø The
cost of the Squeezer is 85 roubles. |
Ø Lomov
is dressed in formal clothes because – he is going to
propose Natalya. Ø The
first argument is over land. Ø The second argument is over hunting dog. Ø Lomov
suffers from palpetition. Ø The
play was acted in the late 1880s. Ø According
to Natalya, Lomov is a land-grabber. Ø According
to Lomov, Chubukov’s mother was hump-backed. Ø Lomov’s
heart was his hat. Ø Chubukov
will shoot himself because of Natalya. Ø Ivan
Lomov’s aunt was Natasha Mihalovna. Ø Lomov
said that he jumped like a lunatic. Ø Natalaya
says that they are shelling peas for drying. Ø Chubukov
wants to shoot Lomov like a patridge. Ø Lomov
argued that the peasants of Natalya’s father’s grandfather freely used the
Meadows for – 40 Years. Ø Natalya
is an excellent – house keeper. Ø Lomov
feels a twitch in his right – eye brow. Ø Lomov
feels a sudden pull in his – left side. Ø At
the time of getting of sleep Lomov feels another pull – 20 times. Ø Natalya
meets Lomov , dressed in a loose – gown. Ø Natalya
asks Lomov to have some – lunch. Ø Natalya
asks Lomov if he was going to – a ball. Ø Lomov
inherited land from his – late aunt and her husband. Ø According
to Lomov, the peasants of Natalya’s father’s grandfather used to bake – bricks. Ø Pettifogger
means – lawyer. Ø Lomov
will have the matter of dispute taken to – court. Ø According
to Lomov, Squeezer should not be more than – 25
roubles. Ø Chubukov
celebrates the union with – champagne. Ø Lomov argues that a dog like Squeezer can be found under – every bush. |
1.
Justify the title of the
play “The Proposal” (6)
Ans:- Anton Chekhov named the play very logically. At the beginning of the play, Lomov comes to Natalya’s house with a marriage proposal. Natalya’s father becomes overjoyed. But before Lomov can propose Natalya, they have a dispute over the ownership of Oxen Meadows, and Lomov leaves. But when Natalya learns that Lomov has come to propose her, she calls Lomov again. Then the proposal hangs again over the issue of their dog’s superiority. But in the end, Natalya’s father takes the couple by the hand and persuades them to marry. The play ends with Natalia and Lomov kissing and hugging each other. So the drama revolves around Lomov’s marriage proposal to Natalia. Even if they quarrel twice, the real purpose, that is, the marriage proposal, remains intact. So the title justifies the theme of the play.
“I have come to you, …… to trouble you with a request” — Who is the speaker? Who is he speaking to? What is the request? How did the person spoken to react to the request? (1+1+2+2) OR
“Why are
you formal in your get up.” – Who is the speaker? Who is being spoken to? What
leads the speaker to make this comment? [1+1+4 = 6] [H.S. = 2019] OR
“Then why are you in evening dress, my
precious?” – Who says this? Why is the person spoken to in his evening dress?
What does speaker guess? (1+2+3)
Ans:- Here the speaker is Lomov, one of the central characters in the one-act play “The Proposal”.
He is speaking to his neighbour, Chubukov.
Lomov was 35-years old, a critical age to get married. So wearing formal dress, he came to Chubukov to ask for his daughter’s hand in marriage. That was the request.
Chubukov was vey happy hearing
Lomov’s proposal. He couldn’t believe his ears. He hugged and kissed him. He
told Lomov that he had been expecting this for a long time. He then blessed
Lombov and his daughter.
2) “She
is like a love-sick cat.” – Who said this about whom? Analyse the character of
the person, referred to here, under the light of the comment above. [1+1+4 =
6] [H.S. = 2017]
Ans. Chubukov said this about his
daughter, Natalya.
Natalya was very eager to get
married to Lomov. His father was right in his comment. After the quarrel, when
Natalya came to know that Lomov had come to propose her in marriage, she felt
ill. She fell into an easy chair and started lamenting over the lost chance of
marriage. She begged her father to bring him back. This extreme desperation of
marriage to Lomov shows her love-sickness.
3)Why did
Lomov think about taking a decision about getting married? Whom did he want to
marry? Why? [3+1+2 = 6] [H.S. = 2016] OR.
“And it’s
impossible for me not to marry.” – Why is the speaker so interested to marry?
Whom does he want to marry and why? [3+1+2 = 6] [H.S. = 2020]
Ans. Lomov thought about making a
decision about getting married. There were some reasons. He was already 35
years old. According to him, it was a critical age for marriage. He wanted to
lead a quiet and regular life. He had several nervous disorder. So, without
wasting any time looking for ideal or real love, he decided to get married.
Lomov wanted to marry Natalya
Stepanovna, the daughter of Chubukov.
Natalya Stepanovna was an
excellent housekeeper. She was good looking and well educated. Lomov was quite
satisfied with the qualities in Natalya.
4) “Go
there is a merchant come for his goods.” – Who said this and to whom? Who is
the merchant? What is referred to as goods? In what way does it bring out the
attitude of the person and the society at the time? [2+1+1+2 = 6] [H.S. = 2018]
Ans. Chubukov said this to his
daughter, Natalya in Anton Chekhov’s play ‘The Proposal’.
The person referred to here as
merchant is Lomov.
Natalya is referred to here as
‘goods’.
By these words, we can assume a business-like mentality of the speaker and the humiliating attitude of contemporary society towards women. Chubukov considers that marriage is a business deal. Grooms are like the merchants and the brides are treated as their goods. It reflects a male-dominated society where marriageable daughters are considered as economic liability and burden to their fathers.
5)Write a short character sketch of Natalya Stepanovna. (6)
Ans:- Natalya is one of the
central characters in the play ‘The Proposal’ written by Anton Chekhov. She is
a 25-year-old unmarried woman, the daughter of landowner Chubukov. Natalya is a
well-educated, nice housekeeper and not bad looking at all. Her father
describes her as a love-sick cat. At the beginning of the play she appears
humble and obedient when she greets her neighbour, Lombov warmly. But we see a
bit of stubbornness and rudeness in Natalya when she gets into an argument with
Lomov over ownership of Oxen Meadows and the superiority of their dog. But when
she learns that Lomov has come to propose her, she regrets it, becomes
desperate to marry him, and blames her father for everything. All in all
Natalya is a complex, hypocritical character.
6)Describe
the character of chubukov as an sensible father. [6] [H.S. = 2016]
Ans. Stepan Stepanovitch Chubukov is a sensible father. He is a neighbour of Lomov. He knows everything about Lomov’s property and social status. When he came to know that Lomov had come to propose to her daughter, he was extremely elated. As a sensible father, he addressed his son-in-law by the words like ‘my precious and ‘my angel’ and so on. Sometimes it seems that he acted like an apparently insensible way when he involved in quarrels with Lomov. But on the other hand, he supported his daughter as a sensible father. When Lomov was expelled, he controlled his mental agitation and fetched Lomov to secure his daughter’s future. At the end, when Lomov got his sense back, Chubukov could not wait any longer and put Lomov’s hand into her daughter’s.
7)Love
relationship between Lomov and Natalya.
Or, The
marriage proposal is important to all characters. – Discuss.
*** In Chekhov’s society, marriage is not a union of two minds; rather a suitable business deal where both sides have to earn profit. In ‘The Proposal’, the marriage is also a profitable hope. Chubukov, the father, Natalya, the daughter and Lomov — all belong to the moneyed, land-owner class. Chubukov sees a financially perfection in Lomov for he was really concerned over the marriage of Natalya. Natalya herself realised that all her land issues will be immediately solved once she gets married. Lomov was under tremendous social pressure to get married and then, there always was a possibility of doubling of property if Natalya is the bride. Thus the proposal was important to all for separate
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