Chekhov's plays more than his stories are instructive here. His masterwork, The Cherry Orchard turns in large part on the intentions of Lophahkin the merchant u

Chekhov's plays more than his stories are instructive here. His masterwork, The Cherry Orchard turns in large part on the intentions of Lophahkin the merchant upstart and whether he loves Varya who is attached to a higher social eshelon. In the scene where Lopahkin, is supposed to propose to Varya, he stalls until he is called away, a reflection of the playwright's and the character's ambivalence towards romantic love. In the early one act The Bear, the Widow claims to be "in morning for my life" and has vowed never again to marry. Within the span of 45 minutes she has surrendered to the Bear who has come to her door.