Firs Perspective On Memories Of The Past example essay topic

The Cherry Orchard by Anton Chekhov is very much a play about the past. However, it is more specifically about breaking free from the past through change and acceptance. The consistent theme of memory in terms of both forgetting and remembering are evident throughout the play. The quote at the end of the play where Firs is forgotten and the cherry orchard is cut down is an important symbol of the past dying away and the characters moving on. Firs ends the play and he represents the past in both historical and personal terms in relation to Madame Ranevsky. The great cherry orchard is a symbol of the past, a past that carries different emotions for the various characters.

However, each character is tied to the cherry orchard, and its representation of the past, either directly or indirectly and this is the string that they must cut and break free from. Firs Nikolayev itch is Madame Ranevsky's servant who is eighty-seven years old. He might be a little bit senile but he is still the only link to the estate's happier past. Firs is always commenting on how life on the estate used to be much more pleasant. He explains how his master once went to Paris on a "post-chaise", which is a horse, instead of traveling on a train as they do presently. He also talks about how life was before the serfs were freed and even though he was born a slave on Madame Ranevsky's property and was freed, he stayed on the estate because he had no where else to go like many others.

They had been given the freedom but they lacked the tools to be successful on their own. Firs questions the effectiveness of the Liberation: "And when the Liberation came I was already chief valet. But I wouldn't have any Liberation then; I stayed with the master. I remember how happy everyone else was, but why they were happy they didn't know themselves". He is living proof of this because society has changed and he is still locked in the past. Lopakhin, who comes from a background similar to Firs, has been able to adapt to the modern society and become a success.

Firs represents the old classic system and the times that have past. At the end of the play Firs is ill and needs to be taken to the hospital. There is an error and Anya incorrectly informs anyone that asks that Firs has been taken to the hospital. Barbara even wonders why the note for the doctor has been left behind if Firs has already been taken to the hospital but she does not question it further.

Firs ends up being forgotten at the estate where he lies still, maybe even dead. This symbolizes the passing of the old order in Russia. The Liberation had no meaning to him because he did not have the resources and the education to make a life on his own but he remained loyal to the family his whole life. The family was not only disloyal to him but also disrespectful and unappreciative of his work and care for the family.

He is told to "shut up" on various occasions and insulted for his efforts. When Firs says to Gayef "Put this on, please, master; it's getting damp", Gayef's reply is "What a plague you are, Firs!" when Firs has completely selfless intentions. However, the ultimate act if disloyalty and disrespect towards Firs is the end where the family is so caught up in their own lives that they cannot even be bothered to check if the ill old man is cared for and taken to the hospital. Firs' death represents the final phase in a long process of change from the old to the new. Firs' perspective on memories of the past will be "forgotten" and die with him. Everything in the play revolves around the cherry orchard.

The estate is about 2,500 acres and that the cherry orchard covers most of it. The orchard is an artifact of the past and has no use in the present day. Firs explains that it was once used to make cherry jam in the past but the recipe was lost. It represents the past of the different characters in the play and the memories that have held them in that time. The sound of the breaking string symbolizes forgetting and it is first heard in Act II: "They all sit pensively. Silence reigns, broken only by the mumbling of old Firs.

Suddenly a distant sound is heard as if from the sky, the sound of a string breaking, dying away, melancholy". It is portrayed as the inevitable act of nature forcing the characters to break away from their past and move into present day. It may also represent a hint of the character's futures because as they let go of the past, they may also end with the feeling of melancholy. The beauty of the cherry orchard will be forgotten with Firs death.

The new generation will not be able to appreciate the orchard or it's significance. Therefore, the breaking of the string in Act II and in Act IV emphasizes the separation of the past from the future. Each character is either trying to remember or forget certain parts of their past. Madame Ranevsky is trying to hold on to the past by avoiding the present. She is aware that her past is haunting and taking over her life: "Oh! if only I could free my neck and shoulders from the stone that weighs them down!

If only I could forget my past!" but the orchard represents too much of life for her to let go of it. Her home contains the memories of her dead son and husband and even seeing the tutor, Trofimov, reminds her of her son because he used to tutor him. While Madame Ranevsky tries to hold on to her past, Lopakhin tries to repress them. He wants to forget about his days as a peasant and the abuse he encountered from his father. He wants to ignore his embarrassing past and recreate a new image for himself with his success in the foreground. Trofimov, on the other hand, is worried about Russia's own memory of it's past.

He wants Russia to remember the past without glorifying it. The cherry orchard holds a different meaning for each of the characters; for some it is personal while, for others, it is historical. For example Madame Ranevsky visions her mother to be in the cherry orchard in Act I: "There's mamma walking in the orchard... in a white frock! [Laughing with joy.] There she is". The orchard is very personal for Madame Ranevsky because as we see in Act I, it triggers the pleasant memories of her mother as well as the tragic memories of her son. It is almost another member of her family; her dead family.

On the other hand, Trofimov is shown having visions of the peasants who lived and died working as slaves on Ranevsky's estate: "Do not human spirits look out at you from every tree in the orchard, from every leaf and every stem? Do you not hear human voices? ... Oh!

It is terrible. Your orchard frightens me". To Trofimov, the orchard symbolizes the suffering of the slaves. For Lopakhin, the orchard is linked to his own personal past. It reminds him of his days as a serf and the brutality of his childhood. Madame Ranevsky tends to run from the issues in her life including the present situation of her life.

Her tendency to flee is both emotional and physical. She fled to Paris because of the grief caused by the death of her son, Geisha, who died more recently in a drowning incident, and her husband, who had died six years ago. Her flight home from Paris is physically paralleled to her emotional time travel from present to past. Her home in Russia symbolizes the despair and joys of her past. Madame Ranevsky refuses to accept her present financial state even though Lopakhin shows her the facts and possible cures.

She cannot let go of her cherry orchard even though that may be her only option to save her and her family financially: "Cut down the cherry orchard! Excuse me, but you don't know what you " re talking about. If there is one thing that's interesting, remarkable in fact, in the whole province, it's our cherry orchard", Lopakhin replies to this by saying "There's nothing remarkable about the orchard except that it's a very big one. It only bears once every two years, and then you don't know what to do with the fruit. Nobody wants to buy it". It is clear that this orchard has great meaning to Madame Ranevsky and that she is not willing to accept her present situation.

The orchard is the physical memory of her past. Lopakhin is trying to get away from his past but it is actually Madame Ranevsky that is holding him back. It is her kindness he remembers from his otherwise unpleasant past but at the same time she represents the memories he has tried to put behind him. Only when he buys the cherry orchard in Act is the issue resolved.

He breaks free from his ties to Madame Ranevsky and his past which allows him to continue in the present. Madame Ranevsky and Trofimov are almost opposites in what they value and how they view things. For example, Trofimov puts a greater emphasis on truth over love and beauty whereas Ranevsky puts a much greater emphasis on the latter over truth. This is also apparent when comparing the characters and relating them to the cherry orchard. Madame Ranevsky sees the orchard as being beautiful and Trofimov sees it as a reminder of Russia's repressive past. The cherry orchard becomes a key character on it's own in the play with it's symbolic nature of the past.

Therefore, the death of the cherry orchard is a metaphor in many respects. It forces, or in some cases allows, characters to move on in their lives and let go of a past that they had held on to and nurtured for so long. Firs is the last character to speak in the play. He is a character of the past who has remained in the past and it is ironic that in the end he says "life has gone by as if I'd never lived", because he is always telling stories about the old days. Firs's assumed death and the cutting of the cherry orchard is clearly the release of the past because they are the major representations of that time. As the characters leave and take their separate paths, the success of their lives is unknown but there is a slight sense of opportunity and freedom for each of them.

They can now continue their lives in present day. The Cherry Orchard is ultimately about remembering the past but living in the present.

Bibliography

1. Chekhov, Anton. The Cherry Orchard. New York: Dover Publications Inc., 1991.
2. Dickson, Ben. Spark Note on The Cherry Orchard. 5 Dec. 2004.
3. Kenny, Sarah. Classic Notes on The Cherry Orchard. 29 July 2000.
4. Russell, Yvan. The Anton Chekhov Page. 19 April 1998.