Boots (Chekhov)
Short summary
A small Russian town, presumably late 19th century. Piano-tuner Murkin discovered his boots missing from his hotel room and complained to the waiter Semyon, who had mistakenly put them in the neighboring actress's room while drunk.
When Murkin knocked on her door, the actress threw out a pair of boots that turned out to be two left boots belonging to an actor named Blistanov. Semyon explained that Blistanov had likely taken Murkin's boots by mistake and wouldn't return until the following Tuesday.
Forced to wear the mismatched boots, Murkin suffered physical and moral agonies all day. That evening, he went to the theater to find Blistanov, who was performing in "Bluebeard." When Murkin explained the situation, mentioning that Blistanov had stayed in room 64, another actor identified it as his wife's room. This sparked a scandal, with Blistanov accused of adultery.
"And you believe it?" cried Bluebeard. "You believe this worthless rascal? O-oh! Would you like me to kill him like a dog? Would you like it? I will turn him into a beefsteak! I'll blow his brains out!"
Terrified, Murkin fled barefoot from the theater with Blistanov, still in his Bluebeard costume, chasing him with a revolver. After this incident, Murkin spent two weeks in bed and began referring to himself not only as "rheumatic" but also as "a wounded man."
Detailed summary
Division into chapters is editorial.
Murkin discovers his boots are missing
A piano-tuner named Murkin emerged from his hotel room into the passage, calling for the waiter Semyon in a cracked voice. His face displayed such alarm that one might have thought he had witnessed something terrifying.
And looking at his frightened face one might have supposed that the ceiling had fallen in on him or that he had just seen a ghost in his room.
When the waiter arrived, Murkin complained about not having his boots, explaining that as a rheumatic man, he needed to keep his feet warm, especially since he had an appointment to tune a piano at Madame la Générale Shevelitsyn's home.
The wrong boots from next door
Semyon checked Murkin's room but couldn't find the boots. He admitted that he had been drinking the previous night and must have mistakenly put the boots in another room. The waiter suggested they might be in the neighboring room occupied by an actress.
Reluctantly, Murkin knocked on the actress's door. When she answered, he apologized for disturbing her and explained his predicament. The actress threw a pair of boots out her door without showing herself. Murkin thanked her and returned to his room.
Upon examining the boots, Murkin realized they weren't his. These boots had patches and no red tags, and strangely, both were for the left foot. When he pointed this out to Semyon, the waiter identified them as belonging to Pavel Alexandritch Blistanov, an actor who stayed at the hotel every Tuesday.
"Odd... it seems as though this is not the right boot. Why, here are two left boots! Both are for the left foot! I say, Semyon, these are not my boots! My boots have red tags and no patches on them, and these are in holes and have no tags."
The discovery of Blistanovs peculiar footwear
Semyon explained that Blistanov must have taken Murkin's boots by mistake. Unfortunately, the actor had already left an hour ago and wouldn't return until the following Tuesday. Murkin was distressed, as he needed to go to his appointment at Madame la Générale Shevelitsyn's home.
The waiter suggested that Murkin wear these boots for now and find Blistanov at the theater that evening. When Murkin questioned why there were two left boots, Semyon explained the actor's poverty with disdain, noting that Blistanov claimed to have played counts and princes in those very boots.
"In those very boots," says he, "I have played counts and princes." A queer lot! Artists, that's the only word for them! If I were the governor or anyone in command, I would get all these actors together and clap them all in prison.
A day of discomfort and misunderstanding
With no other option, Murkin reluctantly put on the two left boots and went about his day tuning pianos. He suffered both physically and emotionally, feeling that everyone was staring at his mismatched footwear with the worn-down heels. The ill-fitting boots even gave him a corn.
In the evening, Murkin went to the theater where a performance of Bluebeard was taking place. With the help of an acquaintance who played the flute in the orchestra, he gained access backstage just before the final act.
Confrontation at the theater
In the men's dressing room, Murkin found the actors preparing for the final act. Bluebeard was showing a revolver to King Bobesh, trying to sell it to him. When Murkin asked for Blistanov, Bluebeard identified himself as the actor.
Murkin explained that he was looking for his boots, which had been mixed up with Blistanov's at the hotel. He mentioned that the actress in room 64 had given him Blistanov's boots. This statement caused an immediate uproar, as King Bobesh exclaimed that his wife was staying in that room.
Blistanov vehemently denied having been in room 64 and accused Murkin of slander. King Bobesh, the betrayed husband, turned crimson with rage and pounded his fist on the table so hard that two actresses in the next room felt faint.
"What are you talking about?" said Blistanov, and he scowled. "Have you come here to libel me?" "Not at all, sir—God forbid! You misunderstand me. What am I talking about? About boots!"
Bluebeard, enraged, asked if King Bobesh believed Murkin's accusations and threatened to kill the piano-tuner. The situation quickly escalated into chaos.
The aftermath
People who were walking in the town park that evening witnessed a terrifying scene: a barefoot man with a yellow face and terror-stricken eyes ran out of the theater, pursued by a man in a Bluebeard costume wielding a revolver. What happened next, no one saw.
The only known outcome was that Murkin was confined to his bed for two weeks after his encounter with Blistanov. From then on, whenever he described himself as a man of delicate health and rheumatic, he added that he was also a wounded man.
All that is known is that Murkin was confined to his bed for a fortnight after his acquaintance with Blistanov, and that to the words "I am a man in delicate health, rheumatic" he took to adding, "I am a wounded man..."