ANTON CHEKHOV’S DRAMA:SWAN SONG

SUMMARY:   

                   A swan-song is the last thing produced or performed by an artist for the public.This one-act play of Chekhov is a swan-song for the central character,Svetlovidov.”A swan-song” is a powerful character study of a stage actor, Svetlovidov who has been in the theatre more than forty years.This play represents Svetlovidov last performance on the stage.He has already climbed many peaks of success and achievements in his long acting career.However,his present condition is pitiable.He is ummarried,lonely,old,neglected and frustrated.He has spent forty-five years in the stage acting career with great skills and masterful performance just to meet his old lonely and unhealthy life of failure.He says,”I am helpless.”These remarks best represent the despair(sadness) and failure of Svetlovidov in his old age.

A wonderful,charming and rich woman falls in love with Svetlovidov when he is at the peak of his success.Svetlovidov also loves her and he wants to marry the beautiful young woman to settle happy married life.However,the charming lady asks Svetlovidov to quit his acting career if he wants to marry her.She says,”Leave the stage.”She could love an actor but not be an actor’s wife.She loves Svetlovidov  for his acting but refuses to marry him.This is because acting is regarded to be the profession of low social prestige.The response and attitude of the wonderful woman represents the attitude of upper and middle class society.In a quite desperate(sad) tone ,Svetlovidov says,”I saw then that there was no such thing as holy art,that it was all wild talk and falsity that I was a slave,a plaything….I am an alien(stranger) to them,to them I am so much dirt,almost a prostitute,to please their vanity they will seek my acquaintance,but not one of them would design to marry his sister or daughter to me.I don’t believe in them.”This shows that the artists or stage actors are taken nothing more than the entertainers.They are given no social respect and prestige at all.The actors are praised highly for their skillful performance but they are considered less respectable to be considered for the marital and other intimate relationships.

In this one-act play,Anton Chekhov presents his keen observation of the human vanities and weaknesses.He creates the enduring pictures of the absurdities of life and speech in the masterful portrayal of Svetlovidov.The empty stage represents a great absurdity.Svetlovidov’s appearance on the stage with empty theatre represents the final performance of his acting career.He says that society looks upon him as “plaything for other people’s pastime.”He realizes the absurdity of the world and consoles himself by talking about the universal strength and death-defying power of art and acting.He overcomes his grief which shows that art finally triumphs over personal tragedy.In the end of the play,Nikita cries bitterly at the empty and heart-felt claim of Svetlovidov for act.Nikita cries because Nikita understands the absurdity both in the speech and life of svetlovidov.

FOUR LEVELS:

1.Literal comprehension:Svetlovidov,an old stage actor drunkenly enters the stage of a darkened and deserted theatre.For the first time in his life,he has drunk heavily and fallen asleep in the dressing room of the theatre.He has drunk to forget the emptiness,meaninglessness and bitter experience of his life.The audience and the other artists have already gone home.Svetlovidov comes upstage and begins to lament over his past and the present neglected,lonely and miserable condition.Nikita,a promptor comes to the stage and shows deep sympathy and respect to Svetlovidov.Such a great artist has no home,family,relatives and nobody to care him.He has already given his more than 45 years to the stage performing masterful and skillful role-play.He has devoted himself since long ago for the entertainment of the public and for the upliftment of art and theatre.But now he has met emptiness,hatred,frustration and meaninglessness.He says,”I am helpless.”This remark best represents the despair and failure of Svetlovidov in his old age.Svetlovidov is now in the Swan-song stage of his life and art.He recalls a lost love,sorrowfully reflects upon his unremarkable career and doubts his talent and the choices he made.He remembers his past triumphs,his service in the army and what a dashing young fellow once he was!He now feels lonely,unloved and unappreciated.He recalls a marriage proposal he made once to a beautiful woman,and her response that she would only marry him if he gave up acting.He laments the direction his life has taken and his declining health and talent.Finally,Svetlovidov admits that he is too old,tired,lonely,unhealthy and insignificant.He is like a melting icicles whose ‘song is sung’.The play ends with such a great hero’s acceptance of his old age,decline and meaninglessness.

2.Interpretation:A swan song is the last thing produced or performed by an artist for the public.This one-act play of Chekhov is a swan-song for the central character,Svetlovidov.”a Swan-song” is a powerful character study of a stage actor,Svetlovidov who has been in the theatre more than forty years.This play represents Svetlovidov’s last performance on the stage.He has already climbed many peaks of success and achievements in his long acting career.However,his present condition is pitiable.He is unmarried,lonely,old,neglected and frustrated.He has spent forty-five years in the stage acting career with great skills and masterful performance just to meet his old lonely and unhealthy life of failure.He says,”I am helpless.”These remarks best represent the despair and failure of Svetlovidov in his old age.

                                        

                  In this one-act play,Anton Chekhov presents his keen observation of the human vanities and weaknesses.He creates the enduring pictures of the absurdities of life and speech in the masterful portrayal of Svetlovidov.The empty stage represents a great absurdity.Svetlovidov’s appearance on the stage with empty theatre represents the final performance of his acting career.He says that society looks upon him as “plaything for other people’s past time.”He realizes the absurdity of the world and consoles himself by talking about the universal strength and death-defying power of art and acting.He overcomes his grief which shows that art finally triumphs over personal tragedy.In the end of the play,Nikita cries bitterly at the empty and heart-felt claim of Svetlovidov for art.Nikita cries because she understands the absurdity both in the speech and life of Svetlovidov.

3.Critical Thinking:This one-act play presents a powerful character study of a stage actor,Svetlovidov.Here,Chekhov realistically presents his keen observation of human vanities and weaknesses.He creates the enduring pictures of the absurdities of life and speech in the masterful portrayal of Svetlovidov.However,some ideas of this play are a bit less convincing.How is it possible that such a great and famous actor has no home,family and nobody to care him in his old age?If personal tragedy doesn’t affect art and artists,why does Svetlovidov lament over personal tragedy?

4.Assimilation:I am very much affected from this one-act play.Before reading it,I thought that the artists,stage actors are great,famous,happy and honorable people.But now,I have realized how such ornaments of society are looked down upon by the society and government.While reading this play,I burst into tears by seeing the pitiable condition of such a great artist.