''The Bear: A Joke in One Act'', or ''The Boor'' ( rus, Медведь: Шутка в одном действии, Medved': Shutka v odnom deystvii, 1888), is a one-act
comedic
Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...
play written by Russian author
Anton Chekhov
Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (; 29 January 1860 Old Style date 17 January. – 15 July 1904 Old Style date 2 July.) was a Russian playwright and short-story writer who is considered to be one of the greatest writers of all time. His career ...
. The play was originally dedicated to Nikolai Nikolaevich Solovtsov, Chekhov's boyhood friend and director/actor who first played the character Smirnov.
Characters
* Elena Ivanovna Popova, a landowning little widow, with dimples on her cheeks, her husband has died
*Grigory Stepanovitch Smirnov, a middle-aged landowner
*Luka, Popova's aged
footman
A footman is a male domestic worker employed mainly to wait at table or attend a coach or carriage.
Etymology
Originally in the 14th century a footman denoted a soldier or any pedestrian, later it indicated a foot servant. A running footman deli ...
caring, loyal, obedient and not so intelligent
Plot
The play takes place in the
drawing room
A drawing room is a room in a house where visitors may be entertained, and an alternative name for a living room. The name is derived from the 16th-century terms withdrawing room and withdrawing chamber, which remained in use through the 17th cent ...
of Elena Ivanovna Popova's
estate exactly seven months after her husband's death. Since her husband died, Popova has locked herself in the house in
mourning
Mourning is the expression of an experience that is the consequence of an event in life involving loss, causing grief, occurring as a result of someone's death, specifically someone who was loved although loss from death is not exclusively ...
. Her footman, Luka, begins the play by begging Popova to stop mourning and step outside the estate. She ignores him, saying that she made a promise to her husband to remain forever faithful to his memory. Their conversation is interrupted when Grigory Stepanovitch Smirnov arrives and wishes to see Elena Ivanova Popova.
Although Luka tells Grigory Smirnov to leave, he ignores Luka's requests and enters the dining room. Popova agrees to meet him and Smirnov explains to her that her late husband owes him a sum of 1,200 roubles as a debt. Because he is a landowner, Smirnov explains that he needs the sum paid to him on that same day to pay for the mortgage of a house due the next day. Popova explains that she has no money with her and that she will settle her husband's debts when her
steward arrives the day after tomorrow. Smirnov gets angered by her refusal to pay him back and mocks the supposed 'mourning' of her husband, saying:
:Well, there! "A state of mind."... "Husband died seven months ago!" Must I pay the interest, or mustn't I? I ask you: Must I pay, or must I not? Suppose your husband is dead, and you've got a state of mind, and nonsense of that sort.... And your steward's gone away somewhere, devil take him, what do you want me to do? Do you think I can fly away from my creditors in a
balloon
A balloon is a flexible bag that can be inflated with a gas, such as helium, hydrogen, nitrous oxide, oxygen, and air. For special tasks, balloons can be filled with smoke, liquid water, granular media (e.g. sand, flour or rice), or light so ...
, or what? Or do you expect me to go and run my head into a brick wall?
Smirnov decides that he will not leave the estate until his debts are paid off, even if that means waiting until the day after tomorrow. He and Popova get into another argument when he starts yelling at the footman to bring him
kvass
Kvass is a fermented cereal-based Alcohol by volume, low alcoholic beverage with a slightly cloudy appearance, light-brown colour and sweet-sour taste. It may be flavoured with berries, fruits, herbs or honey.
Kvass stems from the northeastern ...
or any alcoholic beverage. The argument turns into a debate about true love according to the different genders. Smirnov argues that women are incapable of loving "anybody except a lapdog", to which Popova argues that she wholeheartedly loved her husband although he cheated on her and disrespected her. The argument deteriorates into another shouting match about paying back the debt. During this argument Popova insults Smirnov by calling him a bear, amongst other names, saying, "You're a
boor! A coarse bear! A Bourbon! A monster!"
Smirnov, insulted, calls for a
duel
A duel is an arranged engagement in combat between two people, with matched weapons, in accordance with agreed-upon Code duello, rules.
During the 17th and 18th centuries (and earlier), duels were mostly single combats fought with swords (the r ...
, not caring that Popova is a woman. Popova, in turn, enthusiastically agrees and goes off to get a pair of guns her husband owned. Luka overhears their conversation, gets frightened for his mistress, and goes off to find someone to help put an end to their feud before anyone gets hurt. Meanwhile, Smirnov says to himself how impressed he is by Popova's audacity and slowly realizes that he has actually fallen in love with her and her
dimpled cheeks. When Popova returns with the pistols, Smirnov makes his love confession. Popova oscillates between refusing him and ordering him to leave and telling him to stay. Eventually, the two get close and kiss each other just as Luka returns with the gardener and coachman.
Themes
''The Bears comedy derives from the characters' lack of self-knowledge. The widow Popova fancies herself inconsolably bereaved, while Smirnov considers himself a
misogynist
Misogyny () is hatred of, contempt for, or prejudice against women. It is a form of sexism that is used to keep women at a lower social status than men, thus maintaining the societal roles of patriarchy. Misogyny has been widely practiced fo ...
. They are both stock examples of : figures made ludicrous by pretending to be more than they actually are.
History
''The Bear'' is one of many of Chekhov's "farce-
vaudeville
Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic composition ...
s", which also includes ''
The Proposal,'' ''
A Tragedian in Spite of Himself'', and the unfinished ''Night before the Trial''.
[Gottlieb, Vera. ''Chekhov and the Vaudeville: A Study of Chekhov's One-Act Plays''. Cambridge Univ Pr, 2010. Print.] In a letter to
Yakov Polonsky
Yakov Petrovich Polonsky (russian: Яков Петрович Полонский; ) was a leading Pushkinist poet who tried to uphold the waning traditions of Russian Romantic poetry during the heyday of realistic prose.
Of noble birth, Polonsky ...
on February 22, 1888 Chekhov wrote:
:Just to while away the time, I wrote a trivial little vaudeville
'vodevilchik''ref name="pav">Pavlovich, Anton. ''The Complete Plays''. W W Norton & Co Inc, 2007. Print. in the French manner, called ''The Bear'' . . . Alas! when they out on ''
Novoye Vremya
''The New Times'' (russian: Новое Время) is a Russian language magazine in Russia. The magazine was founded in 1943. The current version, established in 1988, is a liberal, independent Russian weekly news magazine, publishing for Russi ...
'' find out that I write vaudevilles they will excommunicate me. What am I to do? I plan something worthwhile—and—it is all tra-la-la! In spite of all my attempts at being serious the result is nothing; with me the serious alternates with the trivial!
Chekhov used the French play ''Les Jurons de Cadillac'' by Pierre Berton as inspiration for ''The Bear''.
The main similarity between the two involves the idea of the male being a 'bear' tamed by a woman. ''Les Jurons de Cadillac'' was originally performed by the actor Nikolai Solovstov, whom Chekhov dedicates ''The Bear'' to and ultimately plays the role of Smirnov.
It had its English language premiere in London in 1911. The United States premiere was in
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
New York may also refer to:
Film and television
* '' ...
in 1915.
In 1935, Russian
theatre producer
A theatrical producer is a person who oversees all aspects of mounting a theatre production. The producer is responsible for the overall financial and managerial functions of a production or venue, raises or provides financial backing, and hires ...
and
director
Director may refer to:
Literature
* ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine
* ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker
* ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty
Music
* Director (band), an Irish rock band
* ''Di ...
Vsevolod Meyerhold
Vsevolod Emilyevich Meyerhold (russian: Всеволод Эмильевич Мейерхольд, translit=Vsévolod Èmíl'evič Mejerchól'd; born german: Karl Kasimir Theodor Meyerhold; 2 February 1940) was a Russian and Soviet theatre ...
produced ''33 Swoons'' (also translated as ''33 Fainting Fits''), which was a production that combined Chekhov's ''The Anniversary'', ''The Bear'', and ''The Proposal''. Meyerhold counted 33 cases of
swooning and combined these three plays with swooning as the key comedic gag.
Reception
The play had its premiere in
Korsh Theatre
The Russian Drama Korsh Theatre (russian: Русский драматический театр Корша), commonly known as the Korsh Theatre, was a theatre which functioned in Moscow, Imperial Russia from 1882 until 1917. It was named after i ...
in Moscow on October 28, 1888.
''The Bear'' was a success from the start. In Chekhov's lifetime it brought in regular
royalties
A royalty payment is a payment made by one party to another that owns a particular asset, for the right to ongoing use of that asset. Royalties are typically agreed upon as a percentage of gross or net revenues derived from the use of an asset o ...
, and it has constantly been revived on both professional and amateur stages worldwide since. Chekhov, who often referred to his own writing in self-deprecating ways, remarked on his success: "I've managed to write a stupid vaudeville which, owing to the fact that it is stupid, is enjoying surprising success."
Adaptations
The play is the basis for operas by
Dominick Argento
Dominick Argento (October 27, 1927 – February 20, 2019) was an American composer known for his lyric operatic and choral music. Among his best known pieces are the operas '' Postcard from Morocco'', '' Miss Havisham's Fire'', ''The Masque of An ...
(''The Boor'', 1957) and
William Walton
Sir William Turner Walton (29 March 19028 March 1983) was an English composer. During a sixty-year career, he wrote music in several classical genres and styles, from film scores to opera. His best-known works include ''Façade'', the cantat ...
(
''The Bear'', 1967). It was also the inspiration for the second act of the 1979 musical ''
A Day in Hollywood/A Night in the Ukraine
''A Day in Hollywood / A Night in the Ukraine'' is a musical comedy consisting of two essentially independent one-act plays, with a book and lyrics by Dick Vosburgh and music by Frank Lazarus. Additionally, songs by other composers are incorporat ...
'', which cleverly transformed the story into a Marx Brothers comedy.
On October 12, 1950, ''
The Nash Airflyte Theater
''The Nash Airflyte Theater'' is an American dramatic anthology television series that was broadcast from September 21, 1950, through March 15, 1951, on CBS on Thursday evenings. It originated from WCBS-TV in New York City at 10:30 p.m. T ...
'' presented ''The Boor'', starring
Fredric March
Fredric March (born Ernest Frederick McIntyre Bickel; August 31, 1897 – April 14, 1975) was an American actor, regarded as one of Hollywood's most celebrated, versatile stars of the 1930s and 1940s.Obituary ''Variety'', April 16, 1975, p ...
, on CBS-TV. It was adapted for an episode of the radio show
''On Stage'' in 1953. Walter Brown Newman wrote the script as a
western
Western may refer to:
Places
*Western, Nebraska, a village in the US
*Western, New York, a town in the US
*Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western world, countries that id ...
, and
Cathy Lewis
Catherine Lee Lewis (December 27, 1916 – November 20, 1968) was an American actress on radio, film, and television. She is remembered best for numerous radio appearances but also noted for making a number of film and television appearances in ...
,
Elliott Lewis, Byron Kane, and Horace Murphy starred.
In 2000 it was made into a short film, ''Speed for Thespians'', in which a group of actors put on ''The Bear'' on a New York City bus.
References
External links
Project Gutenberg eText English translations of several Chekhov plays, including ''The Bear''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bear, The
Plays by Anton Chekhov
1888 plays