The Proposal (Play) —by Anton Chekov | CBSE Class 10 by Arihant

Chapter Summary 

Lomov at Chubukov’s House

The play begins in a drawing room of Chubukov’s house. Ivan Lomov comes to meet Chubukov. Chubukov is extremely happy to meet him. He is surprised to see Lomov wearing a formal dress and asks him if he is going somewhere. Lomov informs him that he has come to meet him because he needs his help. Chubukov thinks that Lomov must have come to borrow money from him and states that he wouldn’t give him any money. Finally, Lomov tells that he has come to ask for Natalya’s (Chubukov’s daughter) hand for marriage.

Chubukov’s Reaction to the Proposal

Chubukov gets very excited after hearing about the proposal. He hugs and kisses Lomov. He informs Lomov that he has been waiting for this proposal since a long time. He even guarantees that Natalya would also agree to the proposal and goes to call her. Lomov Thinks about Natalya and His Life As chubukov leaves, Lomor is left alone in the drawing room. He starts talking to himself. He finds Natalya to be a good housekeeper. She is well educated and not bad looking. He thinks that he needs to get married now because he is thirty-five years old and needs to live a quiet and peaceful life. He also thinks that he is always restless and cannot sleep properly. Infact, we (as readers) find Lomov getting over excited and getting nervous while stating the proposal.

Natalya Meets Lomov

Natalya enters the drawing room and is surprised to see Lomov. She welcomes Lomov and starts talking about the work in the fields. Suddenly, she notices Lomov’s dress and enquires if he is going to a ball (party). Lomov tells her the purpose of his visit. But instead of talking about the proposal, Lomov tells her about the good relations between Lomovs and Chubukovs. He also mentions about Oxen Meadows that he has inherited from his aunt.

Argument over Oxen Meadows

After hearing Lomov calling Oxen Meadows as his own, Natalya tells Lomov that the Oxen Meadows do not belong to him. They actually belong to Chubukov. An argument begins over the Oxen Meadows. Both of them constantly state that the Meadows are owned by them. Lomov offers to show documents to prove his claims. He clarifies that the Oxen Meadows were once a subject of dispute between their families. His aunt’s grandmother gave its free use to the peasants of Natalya’s father’s grandfather. The peasants used to make bricks for the grandmother. Since peasants used the meadows for forty years, Chubukovs started considering the land to be their own. But now they belong to Lomov.

Argument Continues between Natalya and Lomov

Natalya does not agree and sticks to her point that those meadows belong to them. She insists that the land has been owned by them for nearly 300 years. Both Lomov and Natalya insist that the land is not worth a lot of money but they want the land as a matter of principle. Lomov offers to make meadows as a present to Natalya. Natalya also says that she can make meadows a present to Lomov.

Chubukov Joins the Argument

Chubukov enters the room and gets to know the reason for the argument. He supports Natalya and tells Lomov that Oxen Meadows are owned by them. The quarrel increases to such an extent that Lomov and Chubukov start abusing each other and their families. Chubukov asks Lomov not to talk to him so disrespectfully as he is twice of his age. Lomov calls Chubukov a land grabber and threatens to take Chubukov to the court.

This angers Chubukov who sates that Lomov’s grandfather was a drunkard and his younger aunt Nastasya ran away with an architect. He also calls Lomov a villain, a scarecrow and a monster who has the courage to propose. All this excites Lomov and his health deteriorates. Finally, Chubukov asks Lomov to leave his house and never come back again.

Natalya Gets to Know about the Proposal

As soon as Lomov leaves, Chubukov tells Natalya that Lomov had come to propose her for marriage. When Natalya hears this, she almost faints and starts crying. She blames Chubukov for irritating Lomov and asks him to bring Lomov back. Chubukov goes to get Lomov back.

Another Argument over Dogs

Lomov enters the house again. Natalya tells him that the Oxen Meadows belongs to Lomov and shifts the conversation. Then, they start talking about dogs. Lomov tells Natalya that his dog ‘Guess’ is the best dog. Natalya again objects to Lomov’s claims and calls her dog ‘Squeezer’ to be better than Guess. Again, an argument begins. Both of them list the qualities of their dogs and claim their dog to be better than the other. Chubukov also joins the argument and again it grows to such an extent that they start abusing each other.

Chubukov Asks Lomov to Marry Natalya

While they are arguing, Lomov’s condition worsens and he falls onto an arm chair. Both Natalya and Chubukov think that he has died and start crying. They think that Natalya’s chance of getting married has gone. After sometime, Lomov comes to his senses. Chubukov tells Lomov that Natalya is ready for marriage and that they should get married soon. He does not want to lose even a single moment and joins their hand. He asks them to kiss each other and blesses them. But again, they start arguing about their dogs while Chubukov calls everyone for Champagne to try to quiet her daughter.

Reference – @Arihant