Discussion Topic
Outcomes and Implications of the Bet in Chekhov's "The Bet"
Summary:
In Anton Chekhov's "The Bet," the lawyer and banker engage in a bet over the morality of life imprisonment versus the death penalty. The lawyer agrees to 15 years of solitary confinement for a chance at two million rubles. Ultimately, the lawyer forfeits the bet, realizing the futility of material wealth and human pursuits, while the banker feels self-contempt for valuing money over humanity. Neither truly wins; instead, each gains profound insights into the emptiness of their previous values.
In Chekhov's "The Bet," who do you think won the bet between the banker and the lawyer?
This is an interesting question. There are several ways of looking at the outcome. It might be said that neither of the men actually won or lost the bet, because the lawyer didn't collect the two million rubles and the banker didn't lose the two million rubles. Morally speaking, however, it would appear that the lawyer won the bet and the lawyer decided to let the banker "off the hook" by walking out the door five hours before the deadline.
The banker seems to be acknowledging that he lost the bet by his thoughts and behavior on the night before the term of imprisonment expired. He sneaks into the prisoner's room for the first time in fifteen years with the intention of murdering him after keeping him in solitary confinement for all that time. The banker himself would acknowledge that he had lost the bet, and the lawyer would probably...
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assert that he had won it, although he disdained to collect the money.
The bet itself is hard to understand. Initially the two men were arguing about the relative cruelty of capital punishment versus life imprisonment. This is the pertinent dialogue.
"The death sentence and the life sentence are equally immoral, but if I had to choose between the death penalty and imprisonment for life, I would certainly choose the second. To live anyhow is better than not at all."
A lively discussion arose. The banker, who was younger and more nervous in those days, was suddenly carried away by excitement; he struck the table with his fist and shouted at the young man.
"It's not true! I'll bet you two million you wouldn't stay in solitary confinement for five years."
"If you mean that in earnest," said the young man, "I'll take the bet, but I would stay not five but fifteen years."
In the first place, the young lawyer doesn't have anything like two million to put up. It isn't really a bet. The banker has nothing to gain He probably regrets getting involved in such a contest as soon as he has committed himself. He not only stands to lose a fortune, but he has to keep the lawyer in comfort for as long as the young man chooses to stay. He provides his meals and even offers to serve him wine. But how did the question of "life imprisonment" suddenly and inexplicably turn into fifteen years of solitary confinement. Men serving life sentences are not sentenced to solitary confinement too.
It was agreed that for fifteen years he should not be free to cross the threshold of the lodge, to see human beings, to hear the human voice, or to receive letters and newspapers. He was allowed to have a musical, instrument and books, and was allowed to write letters, to drink wine, and to smoke....He might have anything he wanted--books, music, wine, and so on--in any quantity he desired by writing an order, but could only receive them through the window.
Chekhov had to change the argument from capital punishment versus life imprisonment to capital punishment versus fifteen years of solitary confinement. It is hard to detect the slight of hand by which he does this, but he could hardly have a character serving a life sentence, because he would have to die in prison in order to win. The bet is "wild and senseless" enough as it is, but no one would bet he could spend life in a typical prison without the amenities the banker was providing.
"The Bet" is not a typical Chekhov story. He does not usually have surprise endings or even resolutions. "The Lady with a Pet Dog" is more "Chekhovian."
In "The Bet," the lawyer and the banker argue over the issue of solitary confinement versus the death penalty. Specifically, the banker believes that the death penalty is a more "humane" way of dealing with a criminal. In contrast, the lawyer argues in favor of solitary confinement, saying that it is better to "live anyhow" than to not live at all.
In response, the banker continues to disagree with this opinion. He believes that nobody could endure the conditions of solitary confinement.
As this heated discussion continues, the banker proposes the following bet to the lawyer:
I'll bet you two million you wouldn't stay in solitary confinement for five years.
The lawyer is so confident in his belief that he ups the stakes. He says that if the banker is offering a serious bet, he will stay in solitary confinement for 15 years, three times that proposed by the banker.
Their discussion about the death penalty versus solitary confinement has quickly turned into a high-stakes betting situation, therefore setting the scene for the rest of the story's action.
What do the banker and the lawyer realize at the end of "The Bet" by Anton Chekhov?
In "The Bet," both the lawyer and the banker experience a realization at the end of the story. The lawyer realizes life is empty and meaningless because all pursuits and interests are "illusory" and "deceptive." By this, he means human pursuits and interests, like drinking "fragrant wine" and singing songs, do not last forever or create true happiness. This realization has an important effect on the lawyer: it prompts him to forfeit the bet (and his right to the money) because he no longer values material wealth.
Similarly, on learning that the lawyer intends to forfeit the bet, the banker has a realization of his own. He feels "contempt" towards himself, presumably because he values his two million rubles more than he mourns the lawyer's physical and mental state. It is worth noting Chekhov does not make clear the reason for his contempt. Whatever the case, the banker hides the letter in his safe so the lawyer's true feelings never come to light.
What did the banker and the lawyer gain in Anton Chekhov's 'The Bet'?
In an argument about the morality of the death and life sentence, the young lawyer stated that both forms of punishment were equally immoral, but he would choose the life sentence. He reasoned that it was better to live in confinement, rather than not live at all. The banker challenged the lawyer's remarks, and a bet was placed. The banker offered 2 million to the lawyer if he could stay in solitary confinement for five years. The lawyer agreed but also raised the stakes to fifteen years on his part.
During his confinement, the lawyer studied different subjects. He improved his knowledge about the inner workings of the world and claimed that he was wiser based on what he had studied.
"Your books have given me wisdom. All that the unresting thought of man has created in the ages is compressed into a small compass in my brain. I know that I am wiser than all of you.
The banker read a letter by the lawyer stating his new found knowledge and wisdom. In his letter, the lawyer forfeited the sum of 2 million because he despised all earthly riches. The banker understood the point made by the lawyer, and it affected him deeply because he was struggling financially at the time. The banker learned that money was an illusion.
When the banker had read this he laid the page on the table, kissed the strange man on the head, and went out of the lodge, weeping. At no other time, even when he had lost heavily on the Stock Exchange, had he felt so great a contempt for himself.