Sledge-Driver Anton Potapov's Themes In Misery By Anton Chekhov

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“To whom shall I tell my grief?” is what sledge-driver Iona Potapov finds himself wondering in Anton Chekhov’s “Misery” (Chekhov, 1886/2011). The short story introduces Iona as a grief stricken man who has recently loss his son. Although he is a driver who is surrounded by people on busy streets, Iona can “not find among those thousands someone who will listen to him” (Chekhov, 1886/2011). In addition to the loss of his son, he and his mare are in an unfamiliar place. “Anyone who has been torn away from the plough, from the familiar gray landscapes, and cast into this slough, full of monstrous lights, of unceasing uproar and hurrying people, is bound to think” (Chekhov, 1886/2011). While the author was describing the condition of the mare, it is an…show more content…
Not only do the three young men who approach the sledge for a ride offer an insulting price of 20 kopecks, they even make fun of Iona’s hat, to which Iona shrugs off and laughs, “It’s nothing to boast of!” (Chekhov, 1886/2011). While complaining of the time it is taking to reach their destination, one of the men shouts at him, “Do you hear, you old plague? I’ll make you smart. If one stands on ceremony with fellows like you one may as well walk. Do you hear, you old dragon? Or don’t you care a hang what we say?” (Chekhov, 1886/2011). He then slaps Iona on the back of the neck. Iona only laughs and replies, “Merry Gentleman…God give you health!” (Chekhov, 1886/2011). This inference may show readers that though his misery has affecting him on the inside and out, therefore affecting his self-esteem, he a still a man who treats others the way he wishes to be treated. While Iona realizes the abuse that is directed towards him, being around people helps him forget about his pain and loneliness, if only a little
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