The Lottery Ticket

Anton Chekhov

Anton Pavlovich Chekhov

(1860-1904)
He was born on January 29, 1860 and died at the early age of 44.

Anton Chekhov
He was a doctor by profession and a writer by temperament and aptitude.

Medicine is my legal wifeLiterature is my mistress Anton Chekhov

Physician
Major Russian short story writer Playwright

Chekhov About His Writing

You say you have cried at my playsBut this is not why I wrote them, I simply wanted to say to people honestly: Understand, how bad and boring your lives are! People should understand this andcreate themselves another and better life. What is here to cry about?

He wrote sympathetically about characters of all classes, the bored upper classes as well as the deprived poor. His work is known for its unique combination of comedy, tragedy and pathos. Chekhov has enjoyed great popularity in England. English translations of his works started appearing as early as 1903, and influenced leading playwrights and fiction writers. In Chekhov, plot is subordinate to character. Because the short story as a form is too short for the development of character, Chekhov's stories focus on a particular mood.

Stream of Consciousness

Chekhov is considered the most important influence on the development of the modern short story. His stories dispensed with plot; he concentrated on what is happening in the minds of his characters, their "stream of consciousness", rather than external incidents.

Chekhovs Talent and Manner

Selecting important moments from the trivial ones Brevity and conciseness Anti-ideological Anti-pedagogical Objectivity Free artist

What is satire? A literary work in which human vice or folly is attacked through irony, derision, or wit.
What is its purpose? Satire is often used as an attempt to bring about social or political change or to prevent it. Where have you seen the media use satire?

Why do people buy tickets?

Why do people gamble? How are their lives affected if they win? Is it possible to remain unchanged if you win a large lottery? What are some of the problems/concerns associated with lotteries?

The lottery ticket is satirical short story.

Through this story Chekhov exposes the true feelings of (stream of consciousness) wife and husband of different attitudes. In The Lottery Ticket Chekhov dramatizes the unleashing of selfish and cruel impulses in the human mind when it is lured by the prospect of sudden riches.

Money changes everything; Anton Chekhov demonstrates that the mere thought of money can severely impact a personal relationship in his short story, "The Lottery Ticket." An older couple with a family holds what could be a winning lottery ticket, but resists checking the numbers while they daydream about what they might do with the money. At first, their reaction to the possibility of wealth is joyful; but rather than share their dreams and communicate their wishes, IVAN DMITRITCH and his wife Masha recede into their own worlds.

Summary

The story is about a family man named IVAN DMITRITCH. He and his family were living a middle-class life and was very well satisfied with their life. Not until one day, his wife asked her to check the list of lottery drawings in the newspaper. His wife's number got series 9,499, number 26. To his shock and amazement, he saw the series 9,499. Without checking the ticket number yet, he and his wife already started dreaming of a good life. Wanting to put excitement whether they got the correct ticket number or not, they first thought of several possibilities on what to do with the large amount of prize money. They dreamed of a big property, new furnishings, travelling and paying debts. Pictures continuously crawl in their minds, each more selfish than the last. Greed is eating up their imaginations.

They have now seemed to realize that their kind of life is not appropriate for a wealthy and powerly people like them who has just won the lottery. Ivan and his wife soon to annoy each other's company and felt anger against each other, thinking to one another that they are just pain in the head on their plans. Seeing his wife's hatred, he quickly glanced at the newspaper to check the correct ticket number. Unfortunately, it was number 46, not 26! Hatred and anger immediately disappeared, but they immediately seem to realize how small and dark their rooms were, how their supper is not doing them good, and that the evenings were long and wearisome. Their previous simple and contented lives are now changed with more longing for a better life, after having false thoughts that they won the lottery.

Vocabulary

Drawings Mockery Douche Tingling Saunters Vint Soused Despondently Farthing

: : : : : : : : :

result of a draw make fun of stream or jet of water to be effected or excited by emotion walks slowly immersed in a liquid or mixture preserved in salty water in a mood of depression former British bronze coin

Begrudge : Detestable : Malignantly :

resent or envy loathsome(unpleasant) in an evil

Written work: The Lottery Ticket

Give two examples Chekhovs satirical humor in The Lottery Ticket What is he satirizing? What is the purpose of the satire? Is it effective? Why/why not?