In Anton Chekov's The Bear, I think
there are two distinctions in the play with regard to "affairs of the
heart."
First, Popova venerates the memory of her dead
husband, but not out of love. He was a terrible man, cheating on her and making fun of
her, but she is determined to "show" him in death, how dedicated she was and
remains, for the rest of her life. There is no
love in this scenario: only Popova's need to prove (perhaps mostly to herself) that she
had value in the marriage.
When Smirnov enters, romance is
nowhere to be found. He is there to collect a debt, which he desperately needs and
Popova is unable to give him what he wants. This parallels their early interaction: he
has a hardened heart with regard to women, but Popova is in no place in her life where
she can help him—or would even consider it: as we see when he tells her he "likes" her.
To himself he notes:
SMIRNOV.
I
absolutely like her! Absolutely! Even though her cheeks are dimpled, I like her! I'm
almost ready to let the debt go... and I'm not angry any longer.... Wonderful
woman!
When he refuses to
hurt her, she demands to know why. Is he afraid? Finally he admits how he feels and she
is intensely insulted:
POPOVA.
You lie!
Why won't you fight?
SMIRNOV.
Because... because you... because I like
you.
POPOVA.
[Laughs]
He likes me! He dares to say that he likes
me!
However, it would seem
that Chekov is saying that romance is like nature: unpredictable. It does not always
come easily, perhaps satirizing the idea of love at first sight. Chekov may also be
making note that there is a "fine line between love and hate," for at one moment Smirnov
is ready to duel...
SMIRNOV.
It's about
time we got rid of the prejudice that only men need pay for their insults. Devil take
it, if you want equality of rights you can have it. We're going to fight it
out!
POPOVA.
With pistols?
Very well!
The more
passionate she becomes to kill him (perhaps her way of taking out her frustrations she
harbors because of her worthless marriage), the more intrigued Smirnov becomes: she is
not like the simpering women he has known in the past, putting on fragile airs and using
the men around them. In recognizing this, Chekov allows Smirnov to confirm in Popova the
very things she has been trying to find within herself, to feel worthier than her
husband ever gave her credit for being.
And just as quickly
as he was ready to duel, now Smirnov has fallen in love with Popova and sweeps her off
her feet.
SMIRNOV.
[Approaching her]
How angry I am with myself! I'm in love
like a student, I've been on my knees....
…[Puts his arms
around her]
I shall never forgive myself for
this....
POPOVA.
Get away
from me! Take your hands away! I hate you! Let's go and
fight!
[A prolonged
kiss…]
Romance, Chekov seems
to tell the audience, is not an easy affair, but neither is it as impossible as it may
first seem—at least when the "right" people are involved.
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