Yesterday night I was reading a
story by Chekov again- “The student.” I like his writing. In his stories, he
often mentions his character’s full name like, if I remember Anna Sergeyevna in “Lady With The Dog.” When I
read this story, in my middle school sometime, I instantly liked it. It is unusual.
Even Vladimir Navokov considered it one of the best stories of all time. When I
read those difficult Russian last names, I remember my father. When I introduce
to him my friends, they often just tell their first names and my father almost
always, immediately asks their last names. It is culturally very relative, I
guess. Reading about nineteenth century Russian setting as a hobby is strange
but it is worth it. I tell you what- Russian story writers are the best in the
world.
“The Student” seems a cheesy
story at first but when you read it twice, it becomes interesting. A Student comes
back from bird hunting, tired and melancholic. He sees two women, one old and
one young, both widow. They live in what people call- Widow’s house. They are
sitting around a fire. The student tells them a bible story. Peter, a disciple
of Jesus, often called “Rock” who did know
forehand he would deny Jesus three times, was probably also doing the same
thing the night before Jesus Crucifixion. He was scared, confused of his own skin.
Sitting around in a fire with Jesus he promised not to betray but I fell short.
Nevertheless, he became the one of the greatest saint of Jesus. He denied
Jesus. Later on he was filled with remorse, and went out and cried bitterly.
The student tries to find connection
between Peter 1900 years ago and him. The women, one who is ugly was ignoring
the student but when he was so enthusiastically listening to the guy telling
the story, she is silent and attentive. The older woman starts to cry…
The women probably would have
heard or read that particular story so many times before, but they are touched
by the story this time. Chekov later in
the story describes the moment as of unexplainable, mystic moment of joy,
happiness and strange hope. Something that happened in the past has relation in
the present and the future. The student gets enlightened when he is returning
back to his home in that wintery night. As Chekov writes- life to him seems to
be enchanting, marvelous, and full of lofty meaning.
Just in a moment around a fire,
in a cold wintery night, the old widow who begins to cry, sees something in his
story that is relevant to her past, present, and hopefully future. The young
widow’s face looks like she is in pain but hiding it. The student, Ivan
Velikoplosky, connects himself to Peter, a follower, who was scared to announce
it in front of all, but within him was fire and the foundation of the church
reserved for future.
When Peter told ‘Jesus stories’,
many people must have been touched and believed, just like the student touched
the widow’s soul. The student goes away in strange happiness, in hope of better
future. A great story is nothing but what a great story utters in great excitement.
It could be repetitive and familiar; nonetheless it has tremendous potential, a
possible greatness in making.
