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status. The Ranevskaya family is one of the most prominent families in Russia, and Oedipus is a king. According to common beliefs, these people cannot be wrong. They cannot represent ignorance. Chekhov and Sophocles use irony to emphasize this theme. The Ranevskaya family believes that they are a part of the “intelligentsia,” a term with which aristocrats label themselves. They look upon all others with disdain and feel superior to Lopakhin and Trofimov. The irony is that Lopakhin eventually buys them out, and Trofimov is the wise intellectual whom they mock for being the “eternal student.” Chekhov utilizes this intellectual to give light to the idea that “in Russia, only a very few work. They call themselves the intelligentsia, yet they belittle their servants, treat the peasants like animals, are wretched students, never read anything serious, and do absolutely nothing” (Chekhov 346). Trofimov understands the aristocracy, and understands that because of their useless behavior, they are destined to become worthless. It was not a member of the “intelligentsia” that came to this conclusion. Similarly, Sophocles devises an old, wandering blind man to reveal the truth to Oedipus. The irony of a blind peasant being able to see a truth that a king seemingly cannot or refuses to understand is the very essence of this universal theme. We are all equal. We are all equally inferior to the gods and must not be proud and think that we can understand a world which they created. There is a difference in the time and place settings in which these two pieces were written. Russia during the nineteenth century contained quite a different lifestyle than ancient Greece. At the time of Sophocles’ play, religion consisted of many deities, each in charge of a different aspect of life. Russia, on the other hand, has always been a dominantly monotheistic society. Although both places experienced different religious views, the message remains the same. Arrogance is an attempt at godliness, whether there be one god or many. The Greeks labeled this frequent occurrence as hubris, meaning excessive pride. Authors often write of the ignorance and sinfulness of excessive pride. Sophocles claims, “any mortal who dares hold / No immortal Power in awe / Will be caught up in a net of pain” (Sophocles l.844-846. 12 ). The “net of pain” to which he refers is a dreadful fate given by the gods. In this Greek society, arrogance was punishable by the gods. Remaining humble and accepting inferiority to the gods was the key to salvation. The situation was slightly different in Russian society. They did not believe that the gods took such an active role in the lives of humans, and it was not commonly thought that a god would specifically punish somebody. The Ranevskayas, however, do demonstrate that those who assume superiority in general are nothing but fools. The erudite Trofimov sums up this universal theme: Whether or not the estate is sold today—does it really matter? That’s all done with long ago; there’s no turning back, the path is overgrown. Be calm, my dear. One must not deceive oneself; at least once in one’s life one ought to look the truth straight in the eye (Chekhov 357). As he comforts Lyubov while she awaits the news of what happened to the cherry orchard, she is still kidding herself with false hope, ignorant hope. She did not want to see the truth, and now her fate is sealed. Had she opened her eyes, things might have ended up differently. Trofimov tells her to look the dreadful truth straight in the eye because she “served [her] own destruction” 46
(Sophocles l.1468. 20). And yet, despite the wisdom of our predecessors, do we not still find our vision obscured by a prideful stubbornness, our eyes sealed against the light of truth? Note: While the primary texts referred to in the essay serve as the sources for all quotations, complete citations in a “Works Cited” page is considered standard in academic writing. Please include complete citations whenever primary and/or secondary sources are used. 47
Page 1: Miami University Best of Portfolios
Page 4 and 5: Acknowledgements In 1990, Miami Uni
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