The Student

Chekhov, Anton

Primary Category: Literature / Fiction

Genre: Short Story

Annotated by:
Coulehan, Jack
  • Date of entry: May-27-2003

Summary

On Good Friday a clerical student is walking home when he encounters two widows warming themselves around a fire. As the cold evening descends, he joins them and tells the story of the Apostle Peter, who the night before Jesus died was so afraid for his own skin that he denied knowing Jesus, not once, but three times. Afterwards, the Gospels say, he was filled with remorse and "went out and wept bitterly."

The two women are deeply moved by this tale; one of them starts to cry. The student suddenly experiences a connection between the story of Peter, 1900 years old, and the women and himself. He is filled with "the inexpressible sweet expectation of happiness, of unknown mysterious happiness . . . and life seemed to him enchanting, marvelous, and full of lofty meaning."

Commentary

This simple story captures a profound mystical experience. The story tells of betrayal and remorse--a very human sequence but also offers the hope of forgiveness. Peter, after all, becomes one of the greatest of all saints. Human weakness and the need for redemption link us all, past, present, and future.

The student sees that the story touches his listeners--he experiences the power of the word to heal. "Insight" partially captures his experience, because it is a kind of "sight within," but his experience also verges on ecstasy, "a state of overwhelming emotion" or "rapturous delight."

Miscellaneous

Translated from the Russian by Constance Garnett. First published in 1894.

Primary Source

The Tales of Chekhov, Vol. 6: The Witch and Other Stories

Publisher

Ecco

Place Published

New York

Edition

1985

Page Count

6