A very brief retelling of the story “Darling”.
Olga was called “darling” by those around her. She was sweet, naive and amorous. Her first “adult” love was the completely unsympathetic loser Kukin.
The young lady at first felt pity for him, and then she married him and was completely happy in her marriage. Olga got a job with her husband in his unprofitable theater and was ready to devote her whole life to this business.
After Kukin’s sudden death, Olga went crazy with grief, but, admittedly, not for very long.
Soon she cast in her lot with Pustovalov, who worked in the forest. Olga was again absolutely happy, she was imbued with the problems of logging and enjoyed a calm married life.
Unfortunately, the heroine's new husband caught a bad cold and died suddenly. Olga fell into deep mourning, and only a warm friendship with the veterinarian Smirnin prevented her from completely falling into ruin.
Friendship gradually grew into love. Smirnin already had a family and even a son, however, he separated from his wife after catching her cheating.
Fate separated Olga from this lover too - he was sent to serve in a distant regiment.
The life of the “darling” lost its meaning; with each new day without the object of her desire next to her, she became sadder and less like herself.
One day he returned and brought his family with him. Olga kindly offered the Smirnins a roof over their heads and fell in love again. Only this time the maternal instinct woke up in her.
Chekhov's heroine completely surrendered to her affection for Sasha, Smirnin's son. Having replaced the boy’s mother when she left, Olga found the meaning of life, blossomed, became younger and again became the same “darling” for those around her.
Summary
Olenka Plemyannikova, “the daughter of a retired collegiate assessor,” sat in the yard and listened to Kukin’s complaints about the constant rains, which could ruin him. Kukin was an entrepreneur and ran the Tivoli pleasure garden. He complained to the girl not only about the bad weather, but also about the ungrateful, ignorant public, to whom only vulgarity and farce can be served.
It rained every day, and Kukin was on the verge of despair. Seeing the suffering of this short, skinny man “with a yellow face, with combed temples,” Olga Semyonovna soon fell in love with him. The girl “constantly loved someone and could not live without it”: in childhood and adolescence she loved her father, her aunt, then “her French teacher.”
Olenka was a good-natured, compassionate young lady with a meek smile and soft eyes; at the sight of her, the exclamation involuntarily escaped from her lips: “Darling!”
Soon Kukin “proposed, and they got married.” The couple healed well. Olga Semyonovna helped her husband in everything: she sold tickets, paid salaries, recorded expenses, and kept order in the garden. Unwittingly imitating her beloved husband, she told everyone that “the most important and necessary thing in the world is the theater.” The actors loved Olenka and “called “Vanichka and I” and “darling”.”
Despite the fact that things were going well, “Kukin grew thin and yellow and complained of terrible losses.” Soon he left for Moscow to recruit a new troupe, but never returned home. Olga Semyonovna received a telegram - her husband died suddenly, and it was necessary to organize a funeral.
The neighbors sincerely pitied Olenka, who was terribly worried about her husband. She was still in deep mourning when the manager of the lumber yard, Vasily Andreevich Pustovalov, began to look after her. Soon Olenka fell in love with her new boyfriend, and they got married.
The couple lived well: Vasily Andreevich sat at the timber warehouse until lunch, and after that he was replaced by Olga Semyonovna, who wrote out invoices and released goods. She forgot about the theater, and now all her conversations came down to the forest - “what thoughts her husband had, so did she.” Vasily Andreevich did not like entertainment, and on weekends the couple went to church and stayed at home.
The Pustovalovs lived like this for six years, praying that God would send them children. But one day Vasily Andreevich “caught a bad cold and fell ill.” A few months later he died.
After the death of her husband, Olga Semyonovna only went to church or the cemetery and lived “like a nun.” Six months later, she took off her mourning, and people began to increasingly notice her in the company of the veterinarian Smirin, who broke up with his wife because of her infidelity. It became clear that they were in a close relationship. “Another would have been condemned for this, but no one could think badly of Olenka” - she could not live even a year without heartfelt affection.
However, “the happiness did not last long.” Together with his regiment, the veterinarian left forever “somewhere very far away, almost to Siberia.” Parting with him had a bad effect on Olenka. She began to live an empty life, not filled with any thoughts and judgments, because there was no person nearby who would tell her, Olenka, how to think and reason correctly. The woman desperately needed love, “which would capture her whole being, her whole soul, her mind, would give her thoughts, direction of life, would warm her aging blood.”
So year after year passed - “and not a single joy, and there is no opinion.” One evening, the aged veterinarian Smirin knocked on her house. He resigned, made peace with his wife and was going to send his son to the gymnasium. In search of a rented apartment, he came to his former lover, and she happily agreed to provide them with housing.
Little Sasha, who was “already ten years old,” immediately captivated Olga Semyonovna’s heart. The boy began to go to the gymnasium. His mother “went to Kharkov to visit her sister and did not return,” and his father, on business, could not be home for several days. So Sasha found himself in the full care of Olga Semyonovna, who for the first time in her life experienced the strongest, deepest love - maternal love.
Main characters and their characteristics:
- Olga Semyonovna Plemyannikova (Dushechka) is the main character, the amorous and sweet daughter of a retired assessor. A rosy-cheeked, white-skinned, smiling young lady. People around her call her darling, absolutely everyone likes her.
- Ivan Petrovich Kukin is Olga’s first husband and her first love for a man. Kukin is a skinny, pathetic loser who runs a small entertainment theater establishment.
- Vasily Andreevich Pustovalov is Olga’s second husband, manager of a timber warehouse.
- Vladimir Platonich Smirnin is a veterinarian who was friends with Olga and became her new love after the death of Pustovalov.
- Smirnin's wife.
- Sashenka is the son of the Smirnins and the new “meaning of life” for Olga.
Brief retelling
(791 words) In Gypsy Slobodka on the outskirts of the city, not far from the Tivoli pleasure garden, Olga Semyonovna lived in her house. Her father, a retired collegiate assessor Plemyannikov, lived with her. He was old and sick. Neighbors and acquaintances loved Olga Semyonovna, always thought well of her and called her “darling.” She was a modest and kind, compassionate and vulnerable young lady. Her gaze was soft and meek. In appearance, she was a thriving and healthy girl. Olga always had love for someone, she could not live without this feeling.
Olga Semyonovna talked with Ivan Petrovich Kukin, the entrepreneur of the local theater, the owner of the Tivoli garden, where entertainment performances were held. Over time, she fell in love with him. Soon he proposed his hand and heart to her, and they got married. Among her acquaintances, she began to talk a lot about the theater, to live what her husband lived, and held the same opinion about performances, about actors, about the public, like her husband. Olga took an active part in the activities of Ivan Petrovich. In winter, the couple rented the city theater. Soon Kukin felt ill, lost weight and began coughing at night. Olga treated her husband and felt sorry for him. When Ivan Petrovich left for Moscow during Lent, the “darling”, waiting for him at home, felt uneasy. On Holy Monday, a telegram arrived from Moscow saying that Ivan Petrovich had passed away. After the funeral, Olga Semyonovna was very sad and cried loudly.
Three months later, returning from church in sadness and mourning, Olga met her neighbor Vasily Andreich Pustovalov, who was in charge of the timber warehouse of the merchant Babakaev. He began to calm the woman down, spoke smart and kind words to her, and walked her home. He made some new impression on her. After some time, she realized that she fell in love with him. Soon she was matched and the wedding took place. After marriage, Olga replaced Pustovalov at the lumber yard and willingly took part in the affairs of Vasily Andreich. The woman was now talking to her acquaintances about timber prices, tariffs, and had the same opinion as her husband. She forgot to think about the theater and believed that she and her husband had nothing to do there, because they were “working people” and had “no time for trifles.” When Pustovalov left for a long time for the forest in the Mogilev province, “darling” was very bored, worried about Vasily and did not sleep at night. Sometimes in the evening the regimental veterinarian Vladimir Platonich Smirnin came to see her. He was a young man who lived in Olga’s outbuilding. He talked about his family: his wife cheated on him, they separated, and he sent his wife money to provide for their son. Olga felt sorry for Smirnin, and she advised them to make peace. When Vasily Andreich returned, she, compassionate about other people’s problems, told her husband the doctor’s story, and they both sighed and were sad about the poor boy. So Vasily and Olga lived for six years. One winter, Pustovalov caught a cold and fell ill, and after four months of fighting the disease, he died. Olga Semyonovna was very sad, went in mourning, “lived at home like a nun.”
Six months later, she began to gradually come to her senses and gradually became closer to Smirnin. Now she talked with her friends about the problems of the veterinarian profession, about animals, about city slaughterhouses. However, soon the veterinarian departed with the regiment for good towards Siberia. Olga was left completely alone. Her father died long ago. She lost weight and began to look worse. Life stopped beating in her, and she had no opinion on anything, did not know what to talk about with people. Olga lived like this for several years.
One day in the middle of summer, in the evening, the veterinarian Smirnin arrived. Olga was very happy. The doctor said that he had made peace with his wife and had come for good, so he was looking for an apartment for his entire family. Olga immediately invited him to live in her house, but she herself decided to move into the outbuilding. The next day Olga Semyonovna felt fresher, was cheerful, life began to sparkle on her face. The veterinarian’s wife arrived with her son Sasha, a ten-year-old boy. “Darling” immediately fell in love with this child as if she were her own. Soon the boy began to go to the gymnasium, but his mother went to see her sister in Kharkov and did not return, and his father worked a lot, sometimes disappearing for three days. It seemed to Olga that the child had been abandoned. She moved him into her outbuilding, giving him a small room there.
Six months have passed since Olga Semyonovna and Sasha live together in the outbuilding. “Darling” wakes the child up in the morning, feeds him, gets him ready for school, accompanies him to the gymnasium, helps him do his homework, puts him to bed, prays for him and cries. Olga loves the boy very much and is ready to give her whole life for him. She looks younger and has a smile on her radiant face. Neighbors and acquaintances again look at her with affection, greet her and affectionately call her “darling.” Now she tells everyone about how difficult it is to study at the gymnasium now, talks about textbooks, lessons, teachers. She dreams about Sasha's future. One day, having once again put the boy to bed, she hears someone knocking on the gate. In great fright, with the thought that this is a telegram from Kharkov from her mother with a request to bring Sasha, Olga Semyonovna experiences despair. But a minute later he hears the veterinarian’s voice - he has returned home from the club. She calms down and again thinks about Sasha, who has become her own son.
A more detailed summary of the story “Darling” with all the important details is presented here.
A summary of the story “Darling” in detail according to plan.
Conventionally, based on the number of affections of the main character, the story “Darling” can be divided into four parts:
I. Kukin is Olga’s first husband.
Ivan Petrovich Kukin lived as a lodger in the large house of the Plemyannikovs. A short, skinny figure, shrill and always complaining about life character.
Author: Anton Pavlovich Chekhov
Olga often sees him in the yard and sympathizes with his failures in the field of managing a small entertainment theater.
Kukin is always dissatisfied with the ungrateful public, Olga gradually becomes imbued with this dissatisfaction and realizes that she is in love.
After the wedding, the heroine selflessly takes care of her husband, his health and moral peace. She even gets a job at his theater.
Olga becomes the shadow of her husband, but is happy in this role. One day Kukin leaves for Moscow and dies there. With the passing of her husband, Olga loses the meaning of her existence.
II. Pustovalov is Olga’s second husband.
One day Olga is escorted to the gate by the forest manager Pustovalov. After this, the woman finds no place for herself.
Soon matchmakers appear, and Olga is married again. With her new husband, the heroine finds happiness. She begins to be seriously interested in the forest, and devotes all her free time to her beloved.
The heroine's new marriage
But the love story of Olenka and Kukin ended tragically - the husband of the loving young lady died suddenly in Moscow, where he had gone to recruit a new troupe. Our heroine took the death of her husband very hard, although not for long. Within three months, a new affection took root in her heart. Vasily Andreevich Pustovalov, a very sedate and economical man, worked as a manager of a timber warehouse for the merchant Babakaev. Olenka loved him with all her heart. Soon the young people got married. Now the pink-cheeked young lady spoke knowledgeably about the rise in forest prices, timber tariffs, and so on. It seemed to her that she had been doing this for a long time. The Pustovalovs’ home always smelled deliciously of rich bread, fried meat, borscht and pies. Olenka grew plump, happy with her married life.
Vasily Andreevich did not like any entertainment, including the theater. Even on holidays he stayed at home. Olenka shared all the thoughts and intentions of her husband. Now she told her friends that the theater was a trifling entertainment not for working people like her and her husband. When Pustovalov went to the Mogilev province for the forest, Olenka was very bored. Sometimes on such days she was visited by the veterinarian Smirnin, who separated from his wife, leaving behind a small son. Our heroine, sighing, strongly advised him to make peace with his wife for the sake of the child. The young woman described by the author in the story is perfectly characterized even by its brief content. Chekhov's “Darling” is a work about a young lady who gives herself over to her affection with all her heart, however, only until she is replaced by another sympathy. And we will soon see this.
Motherly feelings in Olenka's soul
The next day, an ugly lady with a capricious expression on her face and a small chubby boy appeared in the courtyard of the house. These were Smirnin's wife and son. Olenka moves into the outbuilding, freeing up her house for the family of a retired veterinarian. Smirnin’s wife soon goes to Kharkov to visit her sister and does not return for a long time. The head of the family himself often goes somewhere. Sasha is left alone, abandoned by his parents. Olenka takes the boy to her outhouse. She takes care of him, teaches him lessons, takes him to school, pampers him with sweets. And this is now the whole meaning of her life. “This is my greatest affection of all that I have had before,” says my darling. The summary of the work may well convey the fullness of the maternal feelings that overwhelmed our heroine.
Summary of Chekhov Darling
A.P. Chekhov, a writer who has been struggling all his life with the negative phenomena of the human personality, speaking out against vulgarity and abomination, creates the story “Darling” in 1899.
The work tells us about a sweet woman Olenka Plemyannikov, who tries to please and take care of the person with whom she is next. All my friends love the girl for her quiet and good-natured character, and even began to call her Darling.
The first pages of the story show us Olenka, who spends most of her time with her neighbor Kukin. But this gentleman is dissatisfied with something every day. And this whining and constant complaints touch Olya’s soul so much that she falls in love with him, although Kukin did not have a pleasant appearance at all. Kukin invites Plemyannikova to become his wife, and she does not refuse. She feels sorry for this man.
Having married him, Olenka provides enormous assistance in selling tickets to his entertainment events at the Trivoli establishment, tries to understand theatrical terms, and shows pity for the actors, helping them financially. And she doesn’t say a word to her husband if the debt is not returned to her. When her husband leaves for Moscow to assemble a new troupe, Olenka greatly misses her husband.
But her dear and dear husband falls ill and dies. Olenka cries for a long time over the loss of Vanichka, as she called him, and is in mourning, which lasts only three months.
When Pustovalov leaves for goods, veterinarian Smirnin often comes to Olenka. He tries to evoke pity from her with his stories about his relationship with his wife. Darling gives advice to Smirnin to live in peace and harmony in a family with a happy child.
Upon his return, Olenka’s wife tells the veterinarian’s pitiful story, and they also want to have children. However, their dream was not destined to come true; Pustovalov, catching a cold, becomes seriously ill and dies.
This time Olenka mourns for six months. She sits at home all day and doesn't go anywhere.
