The Proposal

                         The Proposal 

In The Proposal is a one act  play  by Anton Checkov.  In the play marriage is not as romantic as some people believe. The theme is based on two people who love each other by fighting. Lomov and Natayla act like a married couple before they become engaged. They are argumentative from the start.

 Lomov arrives at the Tschubukov's country home. He is formally dressed and full of good cheer for his neighbor. He embraces and kisses him when Lomov reveals his intentions. However when Tschubukov leaves to tell his daughter that Lomov is there. He merely tells her that there is a dealer who has come to buy something a bit of dramatic irony.it later on turns out. But she greets him cheerfully and remarking that he has not been to visit in a long time. That is, until the mention of the "my meadows" made by Lomov.

Everything  is going well when Natalya first enters the room. They chat pleasantly about the weather and agriculture. Ivan attempts to bring up the subject of marriage by first stating how he has known her family since childhood.

Later on  he touches upon his past. He  mentions his family's ownership of the Oxen Meadows. Natalya stops the conversation to clarify. She believes that her family has always owned the meadows and this disagreement turns into caustic debate.

After they yell at each other.Ivan feels dizzy and tries to calm himself down and change the subject back to matrimony. only to get immersed in the argument yet again. Natalya's father joins the battle and taking side of his daughter. He angrily told Ivan to leave the house. After that Natayla comes to know that Ivan comes for propose to her. Later on she told her father to bring him back. 

After that  Ivan has returned. Natalya tries to bend the subject toward romance. But instead of discussing marriage they again begin to argue over which of their dogs is the better hound. This seemingly innocuous topic launches into yet another heated argument. At the  end Ivan proposed Natalya return back to old argument about who owned better dog.

Thinking activity : Oneness of Literature

Thinking Activity : Oneness of Literature

Northop Frye 's theory of Archetypal criticism is based on the idea that whole of literature has oneness.

Literature is the most important part of our life. It is like a Tree. It has many branches but they all connected with each other and it has a same root.  So like this in literature it has many different subjects but all are connected with each other. Also it is like same skeleton with different body. So all has the same root and all are connected with each other. New literature takes few things from the past literature.

       According to T. S. Eliot ' s essay Tradition and Individual talent :

   
                     
"The  Historical sense involves a perception not only of the pastness of past but of its presence. "      

It means that not follow the pastness of the past but follow the present of past.It helps to make better present with the help of good things of past and learn from bad or Negative things. It should  not repeat in the present.

Oneness of literature :

Oneness of literature with reference of Wasteland by T. S. Eliot and joke short story by Anton Chekhov.

The Wasteland by T.S. Eliot :

And when we were children, staying at the archduke's,

My cousin's, he took me out on a sled,

And I was frightened. He said, Marie,

Marie, hold on tight. And down we went.

In the mountains, there you feel free.

  These are the lines from Wasteland. In this lines Marie feels Nostalgic. She is frightend to going over the mountain on the sled. During this time one male person who is her cousin tells her to hold her tight. So he take advantage of Marie fear and tells her to hold him tightly. So in this lines shows the sexual perversion. Also it shows that the girl is not free because of her fear. When they go down she feels  fearless and ultimately she feeling free. So without her cousin she can't go down alone. So we can see the spiritual degradation and sexual perversion and lust in this lines. 

A Joke by Anton Chekhov : 

This story has a same theme and character only the name is changed here the girl name is Nadiya not Marine. But it has also a same theme of sexual perversion. In this story Nadiya feels fear to go down over mountain on the sled. At that time her friend coming with her. He trys to joke with her when they going down at the middle he tells her  words that :  I Love you Nadia ". So by hearing these word she feels strange. She can't believe that whether it is real or illusion. She goes many times with her friend for confirmation about this words. At every time her friend tells her this words for him it is just a joke not anything else. But Nadiya is connecting with these words. She can't decide that whether air or her friend speeking this words. So for deciding that once she goes alone for costing. At that time she is so much frightend that she can't feeling anything. She thinks that it happens because she is frightend at that time. She can't forgot that experience during her life.

Sexual perversion :

In the both Wasteland and A joke we find sexual perversion.

And I was frightened. He said, Marie,

Marie, hold on tight. And down we went.

In the lines of Wasteland is suggested how the boy is lustful. He takes advantage of Marie 's fear and tells her to hold her tightly.

That memory is for her the happiest, the most touching, the most beautiful one of her life.

But as for me, now that I have grown older, I can no longer understand why I said those words and why I jested with Nadia.

In these lines for Nadiya the words spoken by her friend become her source of happiness. For her it is the most beautiful experience in her life. But for the boy these words are meaningless. For him it is a joke and the way of fulfill his lust by spoken this words that " I love you Nadiya ".  But now he grown older and his lust fulfill already so now for him it is like a silly joke.  So these things show the sexual perversion and lustful nature in both the lines of both works. 

Feminist perspective : 

In the both stories  female portrays like weak person. Who can't do anything alone. Both Marie and Nadiya needs man for costing. They feel fear and this fear Become a way for both male character to fulfill their lust.  

   In A joke for Nadiya the four magical words become her reason of happiness but for her friend it is just a time pass or a joke to make himself happy.  Here in both stories female shows a weak  and tool of Man hands just like puppet. Everytime they both needs Man. Without man they  can't do anything. Both male character take advantage of both the girls fear.

Nature: 

In the both story Nature is the way of connecting them. In both story description about Mountain , snow and air. So Nature is the basic theme of both stories.


These way we can see the oneness of literature. There are the themes like sexual perversion and lust which remain forever in any work. From Eliot to Chekhov time it becomes a center of the story.  So this way it remaining forever.

Translation of the story :

"A joke" by Anton Chekhov is translated in Gujrati language. It is published in the Gujrat Samachar Newspaper. The title of this story is " Nankdi Majak". Because it translated into Gujrati. This story has lost its charm. Also in the Gujrati story few lines are not translated :


(We coasted down for the third time and I saw her watching my face and following the movements of my lips with her eyes. But I put my handkerchief to my mouth and coughed, and when we were half-way down) ( A joke )

So the translation of any work lost its  original  charm after translation. The same thing happens here.  writer has not translated well also  the few words lost their charm after the  translation.