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The Roaring Sea: The Setting and Symbolism in “The Lady with the Dog”
“The Lady with the Dog” is a beautiful short story written by the famous Russian
playwright Anton Chekhov. Chekhov is widely regarded as one of the greatest short story writers
of all time, having redefined twentieth-century short fiction with his innovative storytelling. “The
Lady with the Dog” was first published in 1899 and is one of his best-known stories. In the short
story, he portrays an extra-marital affair between Dmitri Dmitrich Gurov and Anna Sergeyevna.
It deals with the themes of true love, deception, the meaning of life, and morality. While
vacationing in Yalta, Dmitri, a Moscow banker and womanizer, sees Anna, a young woman.
Both are in unhappy marriages with their partners, and they start a brief relationship. But their
joyous affair abruptly comes to an end as she receives a letter from her husband imploring her to
come home. They both believe the affair is over as they part ways at the train station. Gurov
returns to Moscow and resumes his dull and monotonous life, but he cannot forget Anna.
Overwhelmed by the desire to see her, he sets out to the town of S. to find her. After failing to
see her in her husband’s house, he goes to the theater for an opening show, expecting that she
might come. He sees Anna in the theater and approaches her while her husband is out. She
confesses her feelings toward him and begs him to go away by promising to visit him in
Moscow. After that, she begins going to Moscow to see Gurov under the ruse of consulting a
doctor. During one such visit, Gurov goes to see her in her hotel room. Now deeply in love with
each other, they worry about the challenges of spending the rest of their lives together. The story
ends as they search for a resolution in hopes of a life without deception and hiding. In “The Lady
with the Dog,” Chekhov uses the story’s setting and symbolism to illustrate how true love
changes the lives of the protagonists.
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Chekhov uses the geographic locale of Yalta to illuminate the excitement, happiness, and
passion experienced by Dmitri and Anna while they were together. The beginning of the story
takes place in Yalta, where Dmitri and Anna first see each other. It is presented as a resort town,
where a lot of people come for vacation and enjoyment. Yalta’s atmosphere, location, and
weather are all indicative of the good time Anna and Dmitri spent together. It is summer in Yalta
when they start their affair, which represents the warmth and passion felt by them. The serene
environment of Yalta also contributes to their romance. Chekhov elegantly describes the beauty
of nature in the instance where Anna and Dmitri were sitting on the bench:
Side by side with a young woman, who looked so exquisite in the early light, soothed and
enchanted by the sight of all this magical beauty — sea, mountains, clouds and the vast
expanse of the sky — Gurov told himself that, when you came to think of it, everything
in the world is beautiful really, everything but our own thoughts and actions, when we
lose sight of the higher aims of life, and of our dignity as human beings. (76)
Chekhov’s expertise in combining the underlying theme with the beautiful description of nature
is very evident in this passage. Dmitri enjoys the real beauty of nature while they are together
and contemplates the significance of love. Even though he had seen all of these sights before, he
had never truly enjoyed their beauty. The presence of Anna not only prompts him to enjoy the
magical beauty of nature but also to think about the higher meanings of life. In his article
“Gurov’s Flights of Emotion in Chekov’s ‘The Lady with the Dog,’” Boyd Creasman states,
“This (above) passage reveals one of the strengths of Chekhov's writing, his superb handling of
the theme of transcendence through love” (2). Creasman’s opinion is definitely valid, as Gurov
thinks about the meaning of life and transcendence through love while sitting with Anna. His
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relationship with Anna gives him a new perspective on his life and the world around him. Yalta’s
environment and Anna’s presence are the factors that force him to think about his notion of love
and life and appreciate nature’s beauty. The happiness and serenity provided by the majestic
beauty of nature in Yalta thus proved crucial to their relationship. Chekhov also uses some
symbols found in Yalta to portray their excitement and passion. The most significant symbol that
can be seen in Yalta is of the roaring sea: “The sea had roared like this long before there was any
Yalta or Oreanda, it was roaring now, and it would go on roaring,...” (76). The roaring sea is
symbolic of the passion felt by Dmitri and Anna in Yalta. Besides, it also foreshadows the strong
love that is going to develop between them. Another symbol utilized by Chekhov is the steamer
from Feodosia: “In the evening, when the wind had dropped, they walked to the pier to see the
steamer in. There were a great many people strolling about the landing-place; some, bunches of
flowers in their hands, were meeting friends” (74). Here, the steamer is symbolic of the
happiness and excitement of Dmitri and Anna while they were in Yalta. It is evident from the
peculiarities and energy of the crowd waiting for the steamer. These symbols, along with the
atmosphere of Yalta, reflect the protagonists' passion and happiness during their brief affair.
​
Chekhov uses the setting of Moscow to illustrate the dissatisfaction and emptiness felt by
Dmitri in the absence of Anna. When he gets back to Moscow from Yalta, it is the beginning of
winter: “When he got back to Moscow it was beginning to look like winter, the stoves were
heated every day, and it was still dark when the children got up to go to school and drank their
tea, so that the nurse had to light the lamp for a short time” (78). Winter is typically associated
with low levels of energy and happiness. Here, winter is symbolic of the loneliness and
dissatisfaction felt by Dmitri after returning to Moscow. It is in stark contrast to the summer he
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enjoyed while at Yalta. In Moscow, he can’t feel the excitement and passion he felt when he was
with Anna. The dull and monotonous life of Moscow dampens the spirit of Dmitri. He loses
interest in everything: “He was sick of his children, sick of the bank, felt not the slightest desire
to go anywhere or talk about anything” (79). In particular, his disinterest in his children speaks a
lot about the dullness and emptiness he experiences in Moscow. Because, despite his general
contempt towards Moscow life, he has always loved and cared for his children. His Yalta
endeavor completely changes his priorities in life as he returns home as a changed man. He loses
interest in everything associated with his Moscow life due to the overwhelming desire to see
Anna. In his article, Creasman notes that “Gurov's second flight of emotion results from his
sudden awareness of the grossness and banality of life in Moscow, and the way it pales in
comparison to the time he spent with Anna in Yalta” (2). The perpetual and trivial talks with his
friends infuriate Dmitri and force him to question the wasting of precious time on businesses that
are useful to no one. What he experiences in Moscow is in stark contrast to the passion and
happiness he experienced while he was with Anna in Yalta. The tediousness and grossness of life
in Moscow make him realize the importance of Anna as well as his true love for her. Thus, the
setting of Moscow helps in portraying the emptiness and tediousness felt by Dmitri in the
absence of Anna.
The author uses the setting of the town of S. as well as symbolism to portray the
challenges and uncertainties in the relationship between Anna and Dmitri. Chekhov employs a
lot of symbols in this part of the story, and they all convey deeper meanings. One such symbol is
the gray fence outside Anna’s house. It represents one of the challenges in their relationship: “In
front of it (the house) was a long grey fence with inverted nails hammered into the tops of the
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palings. “A fence like that is enough to make anyone want to run away,” …” (80). The fence
symbolizes how she is trapped in her marriage. The fence prevents someone from outside from
going into the house, just like how her marriage prevents her from embracing true love and
happiness. The inverted nails on it denote the intensity of that entrapment. Another recurring
symbol in S.Town is the color gray. Gray can be seen in many of the objects in the town of S.,
like the carpet and inkpot in Dmitri’s hotel room: “He arrived at S. in the morning and engaged
the best room in the hotel, which had a carpet of grey military frieze, and a dusty ink-pot on the
table…” (80). The fence outside Anna’s house is also gray. These constant appearances of gray
in this part of the story are symbolic of the uncertainty surrounding their relationship at that time.
Another important symbol, the theater in S., is symbolic of the public life regarding their
relationship. They can not talk in the theater when he meets her there and instead talk on a
staircase where there are not many people. As Creasman remarks in his review of the short story,
“... after Gurov resolves to go to Anna's town, the remainder of the story, in which the characters
are forced to keep up appearances by not telling anyone about the affair, has an aura of
inevitability about it” (3). They keep their affair secret in order to protect their love. They have
no other option but to hide it from the public. Thus, the theater represents the status of their
relationship in front of the public. All these symbols are very effective in illustrating the
uncertainties and challenges in their relationship. Even though the setting of S. highlights the
uncertainties regarding their relationship, it is where they confess their love for each other for the
first time. Hence, S. becomes a place of significance in their lives that changes them completely.
Chekhov brilliantly uses the different settings of the story and the symbols related to
them to illustrate how true love transforms the characters of Anna and Dmitri. He uses the first
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geographical locale in the story, Yalta, to portray the happiness they feel in their lives when they
are together. Although they don’t fall in love with each other at Yalta, it is the place where they
come to understand the joy and meaning that they may bring to each other’s lives. It is only after
returning from Yalta that they realize their love for each other. The author uses the setting of
Moscow to show the meaninglessness and tediousness of Dmitri’s life in Moscow in the absence
of Anna. This dullness makes him realize that he has fallen in love with a woman for the first
time in his life. Chekhov successfully uses the backdrop of Moscow and the characteristics of
life there to portray the emptiness felt by Dmitri after returning from Yalta. He uses the town of
S. to highlight the uncertainties and challenges surrounding their relationship. The depth of their
love makes them overcome their fears, and they confess their love for each other despite those
obstacles. In the town of S., true love has changed their characters radically as they risk
everything they have for its fulfillment. By the end of the story, Dmitri realizes that there is
something called "true love" and he is ready to embrace it. This love also makes him aware of his
past mistakes and bad behavior, thereby profoundly changing him. Chekhov intelligently
portrays the transformational power of true love using these different settings and their effects on
the protagonists. His exceptional control over the story’s atmosphere enables him to convey the
importance of finding true love in “The Lady with the Dog.”
Works Cited
Chekhov, Anton. “The Lady with the Dog.” 1899.
Creasman, Boyd. “Gurov’s Flights of Emotion in Chekov’s `The Lady with the Dog.’” Studies in
Short Fiction, vol. 27, no. 2, Spring 1990, p. 257. EBSCOhost,
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https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=ip,shib&db=a9h&AN=9
705041468&site=ehost-live.