Literary analysis of The Darling written by Anton Chekhov Research Paper

Literary analysis of The Darling written by Anton Chekhov - Research Paper Example On receiving the telegram informing her of his death, Olga is devastated. For some time she is lonely and heart-broken. She then meets Pustovalov, a timber merchant who helps Olga to get over the loss of Kukin. She begins to like him and marries him. Once again Olga adopts his beliefs and opinions as she did when she was married to Kukin. She finds happiness for the second time. But a tragedy strikes again as Pustovalov is struck by illness, from which he never recovers. After Pustovalov’s death, Olga has an affair with Smirnin, a veterinary surgeon. Smirnin who is separated from his wife has a son. This time too Olgas views are the views of Smirnin. Meanwhile Smirnin gets relocated, and Olga again is alone. She stays alone for many years and continues to have no views or opinions of her own. Few years later, Smirnin returns with his wife and son and looks for a place to stay. Olga offers them her place. She begins to love Smirnins son, Sasha, as her own child. Once again, Olg a finds someone to love, and gets a chance to share views and opinions. However Sasha feels suffocated by her excessive love. At the end of the story we find that Olga has no intellectual life that she can call her own. She is always agreeing and following the opinions and views of the persons she loves. She does not have any personality of her own and finds happiness in reflecting the beliefs of her husbands or lovers. Olga is shown as trying to fill her empty life with the love, thoughts, views opinions of others. So it can be said that the story is a negative commentary on the life of a woman who has no identity of her own but only reflects the beliefs and opinions of others. Chekhov’s short stories and plays usually do not have strong plots and focus more on characterization than action. Olga is the protagonist of the story. She is attractive, compassionate and eager to help people. She cannot make up her mind on any

Bullying Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Bullying - Essay Example To begin with, the fresher becomes the ideal â€Å"raw-material† for bullying. The reason being the freshmen are in minority and the senior students are in majority. The latter have gone through the experience of bullying and are waiting for their opportunity to take revenge. Taunts, intimidation, threats and violence are different forms of bullying and it is growing in all the directions like the octopus. The hopeful sign is that there has been increased awareness about the measures to checkmate bullying with those concerned with this issue, parents, teachers and guardians of the society. Making of a bully Vile bullying is tantamount to criminal behavior. In the educational institutions it is practiced by the bullies as if it is part of their curriculum. Some of the reasons for bullying are frustration, absence of role model, abuse and neglect at home, undue influence of peers and conduct disorder etc. The seed for the trait of bullying is sown at home. Children have impressi onable minds, and when parents do not spare enough time for them to meet their genuine needs, they rebel internally and when suppressed over a long period, it results in aggression. A youth fights to establish his own identity failing which he associates with like-minded friends and plans violent acts to give vent to his suppressed desires and goals. The materialistic civilization and the internet revolution have contributed their share to making the youth take to the path of negativities and violence. A youth comes to believe that bullying is the best and immediate solution for all his problems. Acceptable behavior for young adults and solution to bullying, its different perspectives A bully, when called to account, will go to the typical denial mode immediately. This is the common reaction. The bully thinks that offence is the best form of defense. Bullies are excellent manipulators and are experts in passing on the responsibility. In schools and colleges, to tackle bullying has t o be the important part of the school discipline. Students should have a clear understanding at the time of admission that aggression, bullying and violence are not acceptable. A written communication needs to be sent to the guardians and parents mentioning their responsibility on this count and with clear indications about the anti-bullying policy of the institution. The tolerance limit for this negative tendency should be zero and the one who still rebels must find accommodation in reformatory schools, if not outright rustication. The punishment meted out needs to be stern warning to other intending bullies that not only their educational career, but their future is in jeopardy if they violate rules. At the same time all possible counseling methods need to be employed to tame a bully and guidance provided to him as to how to deal with aggression. The bully should be told firmly about the benefits of interaction in a responsible and respectable manner with fellow students, juniors and the teaching faculty. Physical punishment is inappropriate as it will not deliver permanent solution to heal the injured psyche of the affected individual. The final solution to tackle bullying is the collective responsibility of the senior students, teachers, parents and the moral guardians of the society like preachers and spiritual masters. Meekness is not a virtue in all circumstances. Even the most disciplined student need to stand up to the bullies to check them from further adventures. The wise saying goes, â€Å"Meet good with good and evil with justice.† Most of the bullies are internally cowards. David Derbyshire writes about two interesting findings by the researchers, â€Å"Children who returned hostility with hostility appeared to be the most mature, the researchers found. Boys who stood