Discussion Topic
Character dynamics and mutual respect in "The Bet" by Anton Chekhov
Summary:
In "The Bet" by Anton Chekhov, the dynamics between the banker and the lawyer evolve from initial arrogance and contempt to mutual respect and introspection. The lawyer's voluntary isolation and philosophical growth contrast with the banker's increasing moral decay, leading to a profound realization of the futility of material wealth and the value of spiritual enlightenment.
In "The Bet" by Anton Chekhov, which character is more sympathetic, the banker or the lawyer?
In Anton Chekhov's story "The Bet ," it is the banker who is the most sympathetic. This is so because the story is told entirely from his point of view. The conversations and arguments leading up to making the bet, including all the lawyer's quoted words, are represented in a flashback in the banker's memory. The lawyer is a relatively minor character, since he spends most of his time in seclusion. The only hints we have about what is going on in the prisoner's mind have to come through the banker's reflections. We understand the banker's problems and fears very well, since we are locked in his consciousness. He has some bad qualities, but he has some sympathetic qualities as well. We appreciate the fact that he regrets making the bet and that he had tried to talk the lawyer out of going through with it. We can...
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appreciate the fact that he is getting old and has been dreading the release date, when he will be obliged to give up everything he owns to pay off the bet. We can even understand why he might contemplate committing murder to get out of paying two million rubles--but we are pleased when it turns out that he won't have to. It is hard to sympathize with the lawyer because he has become a mystic as a result of solitude, meditation and study. We are pleased that he has found something better than money. This solves the banker's problems, but not at the expense of the lawyer. The banker will be punished by his bad conscience for the rest of his life, but we can understand that he is willing to accept that punishment as long as he can keep his two million rubles. We cannot say that the banker is a better man than the lawyer. Quite the reverse. He was planning to cheat the lawyer out of the money he rightfully owed him, and even planning murder. The lawyer is the better man, but we don't necessarily sympathize with the better man.Â
In "The Bet" by Anton Chekov, do the Banker and the Lawyer respect each other?
The answer to this question is subjective, so it is up to individual readers to defend either yes or no. Personally, I would defend the notion that the two men respect each other at the beginning of the story. They might have different opinions on the capital punishment issue, but that doesn't mean they don't respect each other. The banker is the host of the party, and I don't believe he would have invited the lawyer if he didn't respect or like him in some way. I'm not under the impression that the party is some kind of state dinner, so I assume that everybody there is present by invitation from the banker. The guests are also highly educated bankers, scholars, journalists, lawyers, and so on. Even if the banker doesn't like the lawyer, I believe that he respects the lawyer's intelligence and education base. I believe that much of the same could be said about the lawyer's attitude toward the banker as well. If the lawyer had zero respect for the banker, I do not believe that he would have chosen to attend the party. I also don't think the lawyer would have accepted the terms of the bet if the lawyer didn't trust the banker to hold up his end of the agreement.
I do think it would be wise to comment on how the banker's respect is changed by the end of the bet. He probably deeply respects the lawyer's ability to stick to the solitary confinement for so long; however, the banker doesn't respect it enough to let him live. That's why the banker had the plan to kill the lawyer.
This is a good question.
It is hard to say whether or not the banker respected anyone after that 15 years of imprisonment.
I think that the banker respected the lawyer after he found the note that he left because he realized that if the lawyer forfieted the bet, the banker would be saved from financial ruin.