the bet by anton chekhov what did the lawyer for 15 years

They agreed to a bet: if the lawyer could spend fifteen years in total isolation, the banker would pay him two million rubles. The lawyer would have no direct contact with any other person, but could write notes to communicate with the outside world and receive whatever comforts he desired.

Full Answer

Why did Anton Chekhov write the bet?

By writing this story, Anton Chekhov tried to make people think about the point of their life and the meaning of money. His story points a certain moral and therefore resembles Russian fairy tales. However later, the title “The Fairy Tale” was replaced by “The Bet”.

What happens at the end of Chekhov’s lawyer?

The first edition of this satirical story had another ending. According to Chekhov’s original idea, the Lawyer should have turned himself in to the Banker. Later, the author got disappointed with such a final and excluded it. The existing version ends with the scene of the Lawyer’s escape.

Why was part 3 of Chekhov's the BET cut off?

With a new title, "The Bet", revised and cut (part 3 of the original text now has gone) it was included in Volume 4 of Chekhov's Collected Works, published in 1899–1901 by Adolf Marks. "As I was reading the proofs, I came to dislike the end, it occurred to me that it was too cold and cruel," he explained the reason for the omission in 1903.

Does Chekhov glorify money in “the bet”?

Strangely, some people criticized Anton Chekhov’s story for “glorifying money”. “The Bet” by Anton Chekhov was greatly inspired by Leo Nikolaevich Tolstoy’s ideas. Speaking through the mouth of his character, the Lawyer, Anton Chekhov showed that he did not accept and even despised the existing state of things.

How does the lawyer's 15 year imprisonment?

How does the lawyer's 15-year imprisonment affect the banker? The banker wishes that he had required the lawyer to stay imprisoned for longer. The banker comes to realize that he was wrong about his stance on life imprisonment. The banker mourns the life and experiences that he has deprived the lawyer of.

Why does the lawyer extend the bet from 5 to 15 years?

The lawyer states that the life sentence would be preferable, but the banker calls his bluff, saying that he couldn't stand five years in prison. The decision by the lawyer to raise the stakes is meant to prove his point that a life sentence would be preferable to a death sentence.

How does the lawyer spend his 15 years of imprisonment in the bet by Anton Chekov?

For fifteen years, the lawyer lives on the banker's property, in a small lodge, and has no human contact. He can have any item that he desires.

How did the lawyer spend the first two years in captivity?

During the first year, he spent a lot of time with piano. In the second year, he left the piano and spent his time with books.

What did the lawyer do in the last two years of his confinement?

The prisoner, a young lawyer, spent the final two years of confinement reading. He read books on topics such as philosophy, religion, science, literature, and medicine. The banker recounts that the young lawyer read avidly and voraciously, incessantly moving from text to text.

What happens to the banker during the fifteen years?

He had to stay there exactly fifteen years, beginning from 12 o'clock of November 14, 1870, and ending at 12 o'clock of November, 1885. The slightest attempt on his part to break the conditions, if only two minutes before the end, released the banker from the obligation to pay him two millions.

What happens to the lawyer at the end of the bet?

At the end of Anton Chekhov's "The Bet", the lawyer survives the 15 years in prison but refuses to take the money.

What did the lawyer do in the during the second year of imprisonment?

In the second year, the prisoner stops playing the piano, and he exchanges the light reading of his first year for the classics. Then, in his fifth year, the prisoner requests wine, and he again plays the piano. During this year, the lawyer mostly eats and drink and lies on his bed.

What do you believe happens to the lawyer at the end of the story?

In the end of the story, "The Bet," the lawyer despairs of life, and he reneges on the wager with banker. In their bet about which is crueler, live-long imprisonment or capital punishment, the banker and the lawyer wager their futures.

What does the lawyer stake in the bet?

"Gentlemen, I stake two million!" "Agreed! You stake your millions and I stake my freedom!" said the young man.

How old is the lawyer when he takes the bet?

25 years oldJust 25 years old when he attends the banker's party at the beginning of the story, the lawyer initially asserts that life-imprisonment is far preferable to capital punishment.

What do the banker and the lawyer learn from the story the bet?

In Chekhov's "The Bet," the banker and the lawyer both learn the futility of their wager, as they have found that life and its conditions differ greatly from their more youthful perceptions. The lawyer learns that his sweeping statement that life on any terms is better than death is not true.

What does the banker note about the lawyer?

The banker notes that the lawyer is so emaciated by the end of his sentence that he is hard to look at, prematurely aged, and appears ill. This outward appearance contrasts with the lawyer’s own belief that he has bettered himself.

How old is the lawyer in The Banker's Party?

The Lawyer Character Analysis. The Lawyer. Just 25 years old when he attends the banker’s party at the beginning of the story, the lawyer initially asserts that life-imprisonment is far preferable to capital punishment.

What is the lump in the lawyer's skull?

All the wisdom from the books, writes the lawyer, is condensed into a little lump in his skull. He has become cleverer than almost... (full context) The lawyer has come to hold people who appreciate earthly things in contempt, and as such he... (full context) The banker has begun to cry.

What does a lawyer read in the sixth year?

(full context) In the tenth year, the lawyer reads only the New Testament. In the next two years, he reads haphazardly and randomly,... (full context)

Why is the banker distraught in Part 2?

Part 2. It is fifteen years later and the eve of the lawyer ’s release. The banker is distraught because he cannot afford to pay the two million rubles. ... (full context) The old banker fears that the lawyer will, having won the bet, become wealthy, marry, and enjoy life the same way he... (full context)

What does the note on the lawyer's head reveal?

A note written by the lawyer reveals that he has chosen to abandon the bet, having learned that material goods are fleeting and that divine salvation is worth more than money. Shocked and moved after reading the note, the banker kisses the lawyer on the head and returns to bed.

What happens if the banker loses the bet?

The banker realizes that if he loses, paying off the bet will lead to bankruptcy. In the early hours of the day when the fifteen-year period is to expire, the banker resolves to kill the lawyer, but finds him greatly emaciated and sleeping at a table.

What is the short story about the death penalty?

14 January 1889. The Bet (short story) " The Bet " ( Russian: "Пари", romanized : Pari) is an 1889 short story by Anton Chekhov about a banker and a young lawyer who make a bet with each other following a conversation about whether the death penalty is better or worse than life in prison.

What does the weak character of the banker mean?

This also signifies the weak character of the banker. He is very attached to the materialistic luxuries of life and values human life less than his luxuries as he plans on killing the lawyer. He plans on killing the lawyer for money and nothing but money changes his mind.

Who was the editor of Novoye Vremya?

Suvorin, the Novoye Vremya ' s editor, took it almost as an insult, so Chekhov promised to produce a similar kind of fable for this newspaper before the New Year Eve. He started writing it on 22 December, and on the 30th sent the story by post.

Who are the main characters in the Bet?

Characters. There are two major characters featured in "The Bet": the lawyer and the banker, neither of which have official names in Chekhov's short story.

Who wrote the Cobbler and the Devil?

On 17 December 1888 Nikolai Khudekov asked Chekhov to write a story for Peterburgskaya Gazeta which he was an editor of. Chekhov came up with "The Cobbler and the Devil" (published on 25 December) and informed Alexey Suvorin of that. Suvorin, the Novoye Vremya ' s editor, took it almost as an insult, so Chekhov promised to produce a similar kind of fable for this newspaper before the New Year Eve. He started writing it on 22 December, and on the 30th sent the story by post.

What happens to the banker after the lawyer collects on the bet?

Fifteen years later, the banker realizes that he will be ruined if the lawyer collects on the bet. He decides to kill the lawyer. However, the mentally broken lawyer has lost his faith in humanity and gives up on the bet, walking out of his cell five minutes before his sentence ends.

What does the banker remember about the lawyer?

It proves nothing. He remembers when it was decided that the lawyer would actually be imprisoned in one of the lodges in the banker's garden.

Why does the banker try to talk the lawyer out of it?

The banker is thrilled with the bet and has plenty of money to spend in such a frivolous way, but, over dinner, he tries to talk the lawyer out of it because the lawyer will lose years of his life. He also feels that submitting to voluntary imprisonment will be more difficult than mandatory imprisonment.

How long does a lawyer spend in prison?

An idealistic lawyer and a prominent banker bet that the lawyer can't survive fifteen years in prison. His prize if he wins will be two million rubles. The lawyer is imprisoned in the banker's garden house. Fifteen years later, the banker realizes that he will be ruined if the lawyer collects on the bet. He decides to kill the lawyer.

Why does the banker say he will leave prison early?

To prove it, he says that he will renounce the money he once dreamed of because he now despises it too , and he says that he will leave his prison five hours early, so as to officially lose the bet. The banker weeps with relief, but he feels contempt for himself.

What does the lawyer in the letter say about the banker?

In the letter, the lawyer says that he has acquired great wisdom in these years and that he has learned to despise everything that others think is great about the world.

Did the lawyer have wine and music?

It was agreed that the lawyer could have books and wine and music but no human interaction, and he could pass notes out a small window, asking for whatever he wanted. From his notes, he seemed to have been very depressed during the first year, and he played the piano a lot. He read books of a "light character.".

What is the Bet by Anton Chekhov?

Anton Chekhov was writing this short story for the magazine “Novoe Vremya”. Initially, it had been entitled “The Fairy Tale”, since a described situation was clearly fictional. Its characters and their actions had little in common with a real life.

What did Anton Chekhov try to do?

By writing this story, Anton Chekhov tried to make people think about the point of their life and the meaning of money. His story points a certain moral and therefore resembles Russian fairy tales. However later, the title “The Fairy Tale” was replaced by “The Bet”. The first edition of this satirical story had another ending.

What is Chekhov's attitude towards the death penalty?

He wrote, “… his story is full of life.”. The story also reveals Chekhov’s attitude towards death penalty as something utterly immoral. At the end of the 19 th century, there was a heated dispute on the abolition of capital punishment in Russia. It seems both the Banker and the Lawyer lost the bet.

What was Chekhov's original idea for the ending of the story?

The first edition of this satirical story had another ending. According to Chekhov’s original idea, the Lawyer should have turned himself in to the Banker. Later, the author got disappointed with such a final and excluded it. The existing version ends with the scene of the Lawyer’s escape.

Who inspired Anton Chekhov's story?

Strangely, some people criticized Anton Chekhov’s story for “glorifying money”. “The Bet” by Anton Chekhov was greatly inspired by Leo Nikolaevich Tolstoy’s ideas . Speaking through the mouth of his character, the Lawyer, Anton Chekhov showed that he did not accept and even despised the existing state of things.

Who wrote the summary of the Bet?

The summary of “The Bet” by Anton Chekhov. During a dinner-party two main characters, the young Lawyer and the millionaire Banker, got into an argument. Being nothing more than a whim, the argument somehow resulted in a bet.

What would happen if the lawyer stayed in seclusion?

The Lawyer put himself into a self-made prison. As the years went by, he became a completely different person.

What does the story of the lawyer show?

The story also shows the toll that separation from human society can take on a person. Whereas at first the lawyer was full of virtue, eschewing wine and tobacco, he later gives himself in to his vices, drinking and smoking constantly.

How long does the lawyer live on the banker's property?

Nevertheless, the lawyer decides to stick to his word and the bet is carried out. For fifteen years, the lawyer lives on the banker's property, in a small lodge, and has no human contact. He can have any item that he desires. At first, the lawyer does not comfort himself with any liquor or tobacco, confining himself to playing the piano.

Why did the banker go broke?

The banker, by this time, has gone broke due to his own recklessness and gambling. He begins to worry that the lawyer's bet with him will ruin him financially. The banker begins to hope against all hope that the lawyer will break his vow and lose the bet.

What does the banker confirm?

The banker acquiesces and confirms the lawyer's suspicion that he has mastered languages. As the years go by, the lawyer reads virtually every genre under the sun. He makes his way from the lighter reading of the early years, to the dense text of the Gospels and Shakespeare.

What does the lawyer believe?

The lawyer believes that any life is better than none, and that life cannot be taken away by the government, since life cannot be given back if the government realizes that it made a mistake. The banker and the lawyer decide to enter into a bet, with the banker wagering that the lawyer could not withstand 5 years of imprisonment.

What happened 15 years ago?

Fifteen years ago, a party was thrown at a banker's home, where many intellectuals such a journalists and lawyers attended. During that party, the group in attendance had many lively discussions, ultimately turning to the topic of capital punishment.

Does Chekov show the reader the thoughts of the lawyer?

With nothing to lose, and two million to gain, the lawyer cannot think of a reason to reject the bet. It is very interesting that Chekov does not show the readers the thoughts of the lawyer as he makes this bet. The only time that we see the thoughts of the lawyer clearly is later in the story, through a letter.

When is the Bet short story of the day?

The Bet was featured as The Short Story of the Day on Sat, Nov 14, 2020. 8.7. Create a library and add your favorite stories.

What did the prisoner read in the last two years of his confinement?

In the last two years of his confinement the prisoner read an immense quantity of books quite indiscriminately. At one time he was busy with the natural sciences, then he would ask for Byron or Shakespeare.