Moscow Timelapse

The Gypsies





By 





Aleksandr
Pushkin




The Gypsies in the noisy throng Stray Bessarabia around. Today over the river,
long, They’re lodging in their tents, worn out. Like freedom their
night-resting is – And peaceful sleep the heavens under. Between the wagons’
tired wheels, Covered with rugs, long-used in wonders, A fire’s flamed. A
family’s  Preparing, round it, a dinner; A horse is gazing in the fields,
Is sleeping, free, a teamed bear-thriller. Amidst the steppes all well lives:
The peaceful tasks of families, Ready by morning for a travel, And songs of
wives, and children’ weeps, And ringing of a mobile anvil. But now, over the
Gipsy camp, The dozing silence is prevailing, And heard is, in the sleeping
steppe, Just a dog’s barking and steed’s neighing. Extinguished is each single
light, All’s peaceful now. The moon is shining, Alone in the heaven height, And
at the quiet camp is lighting. Just one old man’s not sleeping, yet, Sitting by
ambers in his tent, Warmed with their last heat – fast by-passing – He’s
looking at the fields’ extent, Covered by clamps of the steam, rising. His
daughter, youthful one and light, Went for a walk in a field, empty. She’s used
to freedom, full and zesty, She will come back, but there’s a night... And soon
the crescent, still a-ruling, Will leave the distant clouds’ set – Zemphira’s
absent, and is cooling A dinner the old man prepared. But there is she. Through
the steppe, lone, A youth is following her steps; For the old gipsy he’s
unknown “My father,” the young maiden says, “We have a guest. I’ve found him,
missing, In a desert that mound behind And called for our camp for a night, He
wants to be like us – the Gipsy; He’s prosecuted by a law.   I’ll be
his friend, the true and fair – His name’s Aleko – and therefore He vowed to
follow me everywhere.”

The Bolshoi.

"Solyony is socially awkward and becomes nervous in large groups."

 'I may be odd – but who's not odd,/ Save fools alike as peas in pod?'

She walked past me a gain and I hurt her feelings again! I don;t know what it is, I have to break her perfect face with a sad look. I love her. why am I such a bounder  I shall buy her a gift, a new samovar, she will like that.

We are leaving. The tents are packed, our horses have been fed and I have rolled up my meagre belongings in a spare greatcoat. Tomorrow we trundle, all of us! Imagine! This town shall be nought but a shell with our exit upon it's brow. A burnt up old shell. So long!

Ah what a day! These people they are so backwards. They believe they are the cream of society. The cream! The whole world rots around them and they play their games and drink their wine. I feel so awkward around them I cannot speak, and when I do I insult them. "Aleko be not angry," I say, but they have never heard of Pushkin. They are immoral, when the brigade moves on I shall not even lok back. To Moscow I go because I am not held back by ideas, I do, make things happen. Pah!

Three Sisters Character Breakdown

Irina Serghyeevna

The sister of Masha, Olga and Andrei, and the youngest of this family, Irena is of the age where she's looking for love. Tuzenbach and Solyony are both in love with her and thus fight about this. Chebutykin discloses her as his favourite and Fyedotik and Rode bring her meaningless toys for gifts, which exposes her youth and playfulness. She is representative of the future and the virgin.

Masha Serghyeevna

The middle sister of this family, Masha is the quiet one. She is married to Kulyghin, however she has become bitter about her marriage, feeling as if she's grown apart from him because of her greater intelligence. When she falls in love with Vershinin she becomes aware of what true love is but relentlessly ends up with her husband. She is representative of the present and the mother.

Olga Serghyeevna

The eldest sister in the orphaned family, Olga becomes the inevitable carer of her brothers and sisters. Herself unmarried, she works for a living in a school. She finds herself by the end of the play meeting her unwanted fate to become headmistress. She is representative of past and the crone.

Natasha/Natalia Ivanova

Initially Natasha is the voice of the outsider, not able to fit into the family. However, she turns this into strength to control and manipulate her environment to her advantage. She is driven to Andrey by circumstance, and thus their marriage quickly becomes dispassionate. She soon has an affair with one of Andrey's colleagues. A manipulative and ambitious character.

Alexander Ignatyevich VERSHININ

A Battery commander from Moscow who knew the sisters when they were young. He has an instant connection with Masha, which turns into an affair. However he is married with two children, and wife who poisons herself all the time. He tends to philosophize, particularly with Tuzenbach. He is representative of hope.

Andrey Serghyevich PROZOROV

The brother in the family, he is somewhat out of the loop of the three sisters. He aspired to be professor but ended up being a member of the county council. He is often deceived by his wife and sadly realizes this. However, he seems to be manipulated by her often. He finds himself unable to escape his situation and thus develops a gambling problem. He ends up mortgaging the house without the sisters permission, much to his shame.

Vasilly Vassilich SOLYONY

He is a Captain in the army, though he embodies many evil and sadistic qualities. He's jealous and shy person. Yet he shows off to the point of self-confessed embarrassment, much to his dismay, when faced with social situations. A dueler and defender he takes his love for Irina to the point of murder.

Nikolai Lvovich TUZENBACH

A Lieutenant in the Army, Tuzenbach embodies many admirable qualities. He is warm, loyal and honest. He also philosophizes, like Vershinin, and quits the army to become a worker and marry Irena. He is the voice of revolution. He is a lover, not a fighter. But is tragically killed by Solyony.

Fiodor Ilyich KOLYGHIN

A master at the local high school, Kulyghin is a self-indulgent, conceited, and socially inept character. He is married to Masha, and praises her integrity throughout. However, he isn't completely oblivious to what occurs throughout the play, and sadly lives with the suspicion of what his wife is really experiencing. He is relieved when Vershinin finally leaves.

Ivan Romanych CHEBUTYKIN

A failed army doctor, Chebutykin fights throughout the play with alcoholism. An old family friend, Chebutykin holds the key to many stories of the past. He idolizes Irina as his favourite and clearly alludes to the lost love he had for their mother. This love was unreturned.

Ferapont Spiridonych

An old man who works for the county council, Ferapont is constantly chasing Andrei to get him to sign important papers. He is constantly forgotten and driven to more effort than an old man should ever have to face. His presence exposes the nature of many of the other characters.

Aleksey Petrovich FEDOTIK

A second Lieutenant in the army

Vladimir Karlovic RODÉ

A second Lieutenant in the army

Anfisa

An eighty-year old servant who has been working in the house for a long time and therefore maintains a particular connection and association with the family. Natasha tries to get rid of her, but Olga keeps her working, even though she is tired and weary.

Bobik

The first born son and child of Natasha and Andrey. Used by Natasha to manipulate the house.

Sofia

The first born daughter and second born child of Natasha and Andrey. Used by Natasha to manipulate Andrey.

Unseen characters

The Three Sisters has a great number of important characters that are talked about frequently, but never seen. These include Protopopov, head of the local Council and Natasha's lover; Vershinin's suicidal wife and two daughters; and Andrey and Natasha's children Bobik and Sofia. J. L. Styan contends in his The Elements of Drama that in the last act Chekhov revised the text to show that Protopopov is the real father of Sofia: "The children are to be tended by their respective fathers"—Andrey pushes Bobik in his pram, and Protopopov sits with Sofia