i'll marry him olya. i'll agree to marry him if only we can go to moscow, oh let's go, please do let's go. there's nowhere in all the world like moscow. let's go olya, let's go. what a variety of characters. though we can't expect to understand every word and gesture they make, we can try to understand by suspending judgment. in doing so, we will make possible the enjoyment of a great play by a writer unsurpassed in his ability to depict real people. according to psychiatrist bruno bettelheim, if we hope to live not just from moment to moment but in true consciousness of our existence, then our greatest need and most difficult achievement is to find meaning in our lives. many of chehkov's characters persist in that attempt. we in the audience observe the search, knowing neither they nor we will necessarily succeed. as in life, there will be no grand moment of revelation. if life is tragedy to those who feel and comedy to those who think, chehkov in encouraging both compassion and thought, rises above any

well, i don't understand you olya. i have a nurse for the children and a wet nurse.share a cook and a maid, whatever do we want this old woman for? what for? i have aged 10 years tonight. we must sort this out olya. you're working at school, i'm working at home. you're teaching. i'm running the house and when i say anything about the servants i know what i'm talking about and that old thief, that old witch must get out of this house tomorrow. how dare you vex me so, how dare you. really, if you don't move downstairs we shall always be quarreling. this is quite dreadful. where's masha? well, it's time we went home. they say the fire's getting less spirit. you know, only one block got burned down. to begin with, it looked as if the whole town was going to be set on fire with that wind. i'm so tired. oh, olyachka my dear, you know, i haven't often thought that if i hadn't married masha i'd have married you. you're so kind. oh, i'm absolutely worn out. what is it? the doctor's got drunk as if he'd done it on purpose, hopelessly drunk as if he'd done it on purpose. you kn