A Romance with a Double Bass
|
|
"A Romance With a Double Bass"
by Anton P. Chekhov.
Reviewed by
Taya K.
| Published in: | 1982 |
| Length: | 7 pages |
| Ranking (1-10): |
|
| Genre: | Short Story |
| Age: | Intermediate |
This funny story is short and easy to read. It's about a musician Smychkov who fell in love with a very beautiful girl, but the circumstances of their meeting were not pleasant. He was going to a party where he was going to play the double bass which he carried in a big leather case. But as the day was very hot, he decided to have a bathe in the river which he was passing by. He left his clothes
under a bush and was enjoying the cool water when he saw a pretty girl fishing from the steep bank of the river. Chekhov describes Smychkov's feelings in such a romancing way, with lyrical words which stir the imagination. Filled with melancholy, Smychkov picked a bunch of flowers on the bank and tied it to the fishing-rod so that the girl didn't notice. But when he returned to the place where he had left his clothes, he found out that they were stolen. He hid himself
under the bridge and tried to think of a possible way out. At this time the girl had to dive into the river as her float didn't appear from the water... Can you imagine the situation? There will be no indecent scenes because the story was written at the beginning of the century, but it's funny to know how the characters would avoid meeting, with their clothes stolen.