Name : Iqra Aslam

Registration # : BSEL07173043
Assignment # : 1st
Department : English (8th semester)
Subject : Science Fiction and Fantasy-A
Submitted to : Mam Sana Malik
Submitted by : Iqra Aslam
Date of submission : 25 May 2021

University of Lahore Sargodha Campus

 Emancipation of Women in The Bear by Anton Chekhov
The Bear is one of Chekhov’s lesser-known plays performed in 1888. It is subtitled ‘Farce in One-Act’. A
farce is “a type of low comedy that employs improbable or otherwise ridiculous situations and mix-ups,
slapstick and horseplay, and crude and even bawdy dialogue” (Murfin & Ray 2003)

Analysis of The Bear by Anton Chekhov.

One of the major themes in the play is emancipation of women. The meaning of emancipation is to be
free from the power of another. Then, from whose power the women in Pre-revolutionary Russia had to
be free? The answer is: from the patriarchal grip they had in Tsarist government.

Before 1917 revolution, women in Russia were treated as the property of men; The society was
extremely patriarchal where the women were given a little identity. According to Tsarist law, women
were not more than men’s slaves; by the law, men had the right to beat their wives. Apart from that
most were not given a proper education. They were made to work in the fields and factories at the age
of 12-14 years or even earlier.

The setting of the play is set in such kind of period where women were not treated equal. In that light,
the reader can understand the behavior of Smirnov who displays much chauvinistic behavior before a
widow. In such kind of time, Popova’s reaction to the boorish behavior of her oppressor is radical and
rebellious. When it comes to the end of the play, Smirnov almost accepts the right of equality and
admires the way Popova behaves giving a positive end to the play.

Let us dig through the play to find out the places where the theme of emancipation of women
highlighted.

01. Popova’s refusal:

Popova: You don’t know how to behave before women!

Smirnov: No, I do know how to behave before women!

Popova: No, you don’t! You’re a rude, ill-bred man! Decent people don’t talk to a woman like that!

Popova’s rejection of Smirnov’s words of humiliation is the first step of her protest against male
chauvinism. She implores her necessity to be addressed politely. Her utterances are an open request
from the oppressing patriarchal agents to treat women with some honor. On the contrary, Smirnov
believes in the social conventions and confirms that he speaks in the correct manner. For his response,
the raged reply of Popova is an open slap to male superiority calling that: only indecent, ill-bred people
can treat women with disrespect.

02. Need of emancipation

Smirnov: … I used to chatter like a magpie about emancipation…

The emergence of a new social convention is introduced through the male-voice of Smirnov. He admits
that he was used to have discussion with women about emancipation. That reveals that there had been
a necessity from both the parties for the emancipation of women.

In the period of Russian revolution, Lenin who was a leading figure in that declared that women
engaging in labor in factories had had a positive effect on women to be free from the patriarchal grip in
the household. The utterance of Smirnov may be a positive hint of that social outbreak of the new idea
of equal right.

03. Smirnov’s view point:

Smirnov: … All women, great or little, are insincere, crooked, backbiters, envious, liars to the marrow of
their bones, vain, trivial, merciless, unreasonable, and, as far as this is concerned…

…have you met a woman who can love anybody except a lapdog?...
… You have the misfortune to be a woman. Tell me truthfully, have you ever seen a woman who was
sincere, faithful, and constant? You haven’t Only freaks and old women are faithful and constant!

Smirnov keeps on insulting all the women in general - calling them as inconsistent and unfaithful. His
disrespectful and degrading attitude towards women may be his negative personal encounters with
women or it may be the projection of social convention about the women. On the other hand, it may be
a script written by patriarchal society to suppress women psychologically to heighten the superiority of
men. There might be other reasons like to cover up the wrong practices of male and rationalize what
they do. It seems to be for this injustice Popova stands against.

04. Popova’s reply:

Popova: Then, according to you, who is faithful and constant in love? is it the man?

Smirnov: Yes, the man!

Popova: The man! (laughs bitterly) Men are faithful and constant in love! what an idea! … I’ll tell you
that of all the men I knew and know, the best was my late husband… I oved him passionately withal my
being, as only a young and imaginative woman can love… and and what then? This best of men
shamelessly deceived me at every step! After his death I found in his desk a whole drawerful of love
letters…

She bitterly rejects the idea of Smirnov that the man is the only one who is faithful and constant in love.
As we discussed earlier, this could be the common projection created by the society to condition the
female psychologically. It is like: ‘Oh! Women, never trust them, that’s their nature; by nature, they are
infidel, untrustworthy…etc.” Popova rejects this idea giving examples from her own life. Though she had
been a loyal wife, her husband had been deceiving her throughout their entire marriage life.

It is a radical but socially unacceptable move taken by Popova to speak against her own husband whom
she still loves. Her this defiant move suggests the rejection of the injustice upon them shattering the
patriarchal social conventions in order to break free.
05. Do not provoke me!
Smirnov: you may have buried yourself alive, but you haven’t forgotten to powder your face!

Popova: How dare you speak to me like that?

Smirnov: Please don’t shout, I’m not your steward! You must allow me to call things by their real names.
I’m not a woman, and I’m used to saying what I think straight out! Don’t you shout, either!

The role-reversal is an important juncture in the play where Smirnov has to request from Popova to be
quiet. However, during his speech he shows that it is the usual way that women to be quiet before a
speech of a man even it is an insult. And further it reveals that men can speak straight out but not the
women. This reveals the patriarchal power men had under the Tsar government.

In that sense, Popova taking the role of the doer and start shouting at Smirnov, leaving him the option to
request, it reveals the rebellion unleased by the women against male chauvinism.

06. Popova’s rage

Popova: (clenches her fists and stamps her foot) You’re a boor! A coarse bear! A Bourbon! A monster!

Smirnov: What? What did you say?

Popova: I said you are a bear, a monster!

Smirnov: (approaching her) May I ask what right you have to insult me?

Popova: And suppose I am insulting you? Do you think I’m afraid of you?
At the climax of Popova’s rage she takes the total control of insulting calling Smirnov a bear. This had
been an unexpected blow on the part of Smirnov who had been practicing the superior power. His
question ‘what right you have to insult me?’ reveals the legal power of insulting possessed by the men.
As we mentioned earlier, it was a Tsarist low that husband can beat their wives.

Popova acts total opposite way that the social conventions expect. This rebellious nature of her can be
seen throughout the play. Therefore, we can understand Chekov’s use of characterization to light the
spark of women’s emancipation.

07. Smirnov’s acceptance

Smirnov: It’s about time we got rid of the prejudice that only men need pay for their insults. Devil take
it, if you want equality of rights you can have it we’re going to fight it out!

… If she fights, well that’s equality of rights, emancipation, and all that! Here the sexes are equal! I’ll
shoot her on principle! But what a woman!

At the climax of the play Smirnov accepts women’s equality of rights and further implores that to earn
that, they have to fight. Popova accepting the duel against Smirnov though she does not know how to
use pistols, shows her determination which amazes Smirnov. In that very moment, he considers Popova
as an ‘equal sex’ which gives her an equal state to men.

This is a deciding moment of the play that Smirnov shows his willingness for women’s emancipation and
starts loving her because of her courage and boldness.

Though simple and humorous, The Bear is a rebellious move by Anton Chekhov during the period of pre-
revolutionary period where women had only a little identity. Therefore, in the feminists’ view, this play
has a social reformative function too.

You may also like to read: Portrayal of Human Emotions by Sarcasm in The Bear by Anton Chekhov

So, we hope that the theme: women emancipation is evident to you by now. If you have anything to
clarify, please feel free to comment below. Share this post if you find this is useful for your friend or the
student.