what happens to the lawyer at the end of the story?

by Juanita Runte 4 min read

So, in the end the lawyer departs as he has written that he will, breaking the contract. On the following morning, watchmen run to the banker, telling him that they have witnessed the lawyer climbing out of a window, going to the gate, and disappearing.

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.Nov 22, 2018

Full Answer

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

Aug 19, 2015 · 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...

Does the lawyer change in the short story the bet?

Answer and Explanation: Become a Study.com member to unlock this answer! Create your account View this answer At the end of Anton Chekhov's "The Bet", the lawyer survives the 15 years in prison but...

Why is the lawyer the protagonist of the story?

May 31, 2016 · What happens to the lawyer at the end of the story "The Bet"? 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...

What happens at the end of the story the bet?

Oct 11, 2021 · At the end, the narrator shows up and finds Bartleby dead. In a small epilogue, the lawyer says that he can't shed any light on who Bartleby was …

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What happens to the lawyers at the end of the story 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 banker decide to do with the lawyer at the end?

The banker decides to end the BR by killing the lawyer. As he goes to see the lawyer he finds and reads a letter written by him. The banker doesn't kill the lawyer because the lawyer leaves early and ends the bet.

What does the banker do at the end of the story?

Does the banker charge by the end of the story? If so, how, and what caused him to change? The banker won, he keeps the $2,000,000, but hates himself for the bet. The lawyer doesn't win any money, but has learned the value of life.

What did the lawyer learn at the end of 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.

Why did the lawyer break the bet?

The banker, on the other hand, has misused his money; and now if he pays off the bet, the banker will lose everything. After much inner turmoil, the banker decides to kill the lawyer before the end of the bet to keep from having to pay the loan. He sneaks into the guest house.Sep 9, 2020

How did the lawyer break the contract?

From all his readings, the lawyer has learned the vanity of human desires; certainly, the desire for material gain corrupts the soul. ... So, in the end the lawyer departs as he has written that he will, breaking the contract.

What does the lawyer stake in the bet?

"If you mean that in earnest," said the young man, "I'll take the bet, but I would stay not five but fifteen years." "Fifteen? Done!" cried the banker. "Gentlemen, I stake two million!"

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 banker go to the lodge on the last night of the lawyers imprisonment?

The banker went at once with the servants to the lodge and made sure of the flight of his prisoner. To avoid arousing unnecessary talk, he took from the table the writing in which the millions were renounced, and when he got home, locked it upon the fireproof safe. What happened in the morning?

Who wins the bet in the bet?

The banker wins the bet. The attorney escapes the night before he is to win the bet.

What were the activities of the lawyer during his imprisonment in the short story the bet by Anton Chekhov?

During this year, the lawyer mostly eats and drink and lies on his bed. But, at times he writes all night; afterwards, however, he tears up what he has written, crying. Then, in the sixth year, he begins to study languages, history, and philosophy.

What is the book The Bet about?

Published in 1889, The Bet follows the story of a banker and a young lawyer who make a bet about whether it is better for someone to go to prison or be sentenced to death. The lawyer believes that any kind of life, good or bad, is better than being dead.

What is the Bet?

The Bet is a short story written by Russian writer Anton Chekhov. Published in 1889, The Bet follows the story of a banker and a young lawyer who make a bet about whether it is better for someone to go to prison or be sentenced to death. The lawyer believes that any kind of life, good or bad, is better than being dead. The banker decides to wager that if the lawyer can survive solitary confinement in prison for 15 years the banker will pay the lawyer 2 million rubles.

What was the lawyer's only activity after the first year of confinement?

Evidently the lawyer's only activities after the first year of confinement were reading and thinking. His reading during the first year suggests that he was only using books as a way of killing...

How long did a lawyer spend in solitary confinement?

The lawyer's change of character has to be the result of spending fifteen years in solitary confinement. In order to pass the time, and in order to keep from going "stir crazy," the lawyer has...

Why didn't the banker claim the 2 million rubles?

It was a lucky thing that the prisoner decided not to claim the two million rubles, because the banker slipped into his room with the intention of murderiing him. The banker's conduct was proof of...

What happens in the time between when the wager is made and when it ends?

In the time between when the wager is made and when it ends, circumstances for the banker have turned for the worst. He has lost most of his fortune, and, as the deadline approaches, he realizes...

Why does the banker regard the bet as "cursed"?

The banker regards the bet as "cursed" because it seems to have brought him nothing but bad luck. Since making the bet with the young lawyer, the banker's fortunes have taken a serious turn for the...

What do the banker and the lawyer learn from Chekhov's "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...

How much money would a lawyer get if he was in solitary confinement?

If the lawyer could stay in solitary confinement for fifteen years, the banker would give him two million rubles as prize money. According to the bet, the lawyer would have to spend the fifteen...

What does the lawyer say about Bartleby?

In a small epilogue, the lawyer says that he can't shed any light on who Bartleby was or what was wrong with him. All he knows is that Bartleby, before coming to work for him, worked at the Dead Letter Office burning undeliverable mail, much of it letters and packages for dead people.

Who is the narrator in Bartleby the Scrivener?

The story's first-person narrator is the lawyer who runs the law office. He begins by informing the reader that he has known many scriveners (law-copyists) during his time as a lawyer, but none as interesting as Bartleby.

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.

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Issues

  • As the group argued, the two sides of the debate coalesced into two representatives: the banker, who is for capital punishment and believes that it is more merciful, and a lawyer, who believes that life imprisonment is the better option, due to its preservation of life. The lawyer believes that any life is better than none, and that life cannot be taken away by the government, since life cannot
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Example

  • 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. The lawyer, young and idealistic, decides to up the ante and makes the bet longer: 15 years. If he could last to the end of his sentence, the lawyer would receive two million rubles for wining the bet.
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Synopsis

  • The banker cannot fathom his good fortune, and even offers the young lawyer a way out, saying that he is being hasty and foolish. Nevertheless, the lawyer decides to stick to his word and the bet is carried out.
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Plot

  • 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. But as the years progress, he gives in and spends much of his time drunk or asleep.
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Contents

  • Later, the main focus of his time becomes books, as he searches for adventures and comforts that he cannot possess physically. He takes great advantage of the banker's ability to provide any book, and asks that the banker test the result of his reading by firing two shots in the garden if his translations of several languages is indeed flawless. The banker acquiesces and confirms the la…
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Plot summary

  • With this in mind, the banker goes to investigate how the lawyer is doing. He finds that his prisoner is asleep at his desk, looking much older and careworn than he ever imagined him to be. After observing him for a few seconds, the banker notices a letter on the table.
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Analysis

  • Through this story, Chekov demonstrates the pitfalls of idealism and the foolishness of youth. Had the lawyer been older and wiser, he would never have decided so impulsively to go through with this bet. Had he had a family, a wife, childrenany support structure that depended on himhe would not have agreed. So the bet also demonstrates the selfishness of man and youth. With no…
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Reviews

  • 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. We never see the lawyer's thought process wholly unvarnished and unfiltered, as we often see the thoughts of the banker. This allows the lawyer to remain a pure model of ideali…
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Themes

  • 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. He has lost some of his idealism, even as he continues to seek to prove it, and himself, right. The story is left rather open-ended, with the reader left with a …
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Criticism

  • The banker does feel some contempt for himself, but the story does not give the reader much more detail than that. It is possible that the banker struggles with his decisions for the rest of his life as he does choose to hold onto the lawyer's last letter, but it is equally possible that he simply forgets about the lawyer in a few years time, locking away all thought of him from his mind.
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