In Exile (Chekhov)
Short summary
Siberia, late 19th century. On a riverbank by a campfire, old Semyon and a young Tatar sat talking while other ferrymen rested in a hut. The Tatar spoke of his home in Simbirsk province and his young wife whom he missed.
Semyon told the Tatar he would get used to exile. He boasted that he wanted nothing in life and was therefore free and happy. To illustrate his point, Semyon told the story of a gentleman settler who initially tried to live by his own work but gradually became consumed with longing for his past life. The gentleman's wife came to join him but soon left with another man. Later, his daughter grew up, became his joy, but fell ill with consumption.
The Tatar disagreed with Semyon's philosophy, arguing that human connection was worth any suffering. When the gentleman appeared, rushing to find a doctor for his daughter, Semyon mocked him. The Tatar confronted Semyon:
"The gentleman is a good soul, excellent, and you are a beast, bad! The gentleman is alive, but you are a dead carcass... God created man to be alive, and to have joy and grief and sorrow; but you want nothing."
Later, in the hut, as the ferrymen fell asleep, they heard the Tatar crying outside in the cold night.
Detailed summary
Division into chapters is editorial.
Old Semyon and the Tatar by the campfire
On the bank of a dark, cold river, Old Semyon, nicknamed "Canny," and a young Tatar sat by a campfire while the other three ferrymen rested in a nearby hut. The night was damp and cold, with ice knocking against their barge and the last remnants of winter still visible despite Easter having passed.
Though drunk, Semyon avoided joining the others in the hut for fear they would ask for his vodka. The Tatar, ill and weary, wrapped himself in rags and spoke longingly of his home in the Simbirsk province and his beautiful, clever wife he had left behind.
The dark, cold river was flowing ten paces away; it grumbled, lapped against the hollow clay banks and raced on swiftly towards the faraway sea... It was damp and cold... The Tatar glanced at the sky.
Semyons philosophy of wanting nothing
As they sat by the fire, Semyon began expounding his life philosophy to the young Tatar. He claimed that despite his harsh existence as a ferryman for twenty-two years, he was content with his lot. Semyon insisted that freedom, family, and possessions were all unnecessary burdens, and the key to happiness was wanting nothing.
"If you want to be happy," says I, "the chief thing is not to want anything. Yes... If Fate has wronged you cruelly it's no good asking for her favor and bowing down to her, but you despise her and laugh at her."
Semyon revealed that he was not a simple peasant but the son of a deacon who once lived in Kursk and wore a frock-coat. Despite his educated background, he had adapted to his exile, sleeping naked on the ground and eating grass when necessary. He boasted that he was afraid of nothing and wanted nothing, making him the richest and freest man alive.
According to Semyon, anyone who gave in to desires, even once, was lost forever. He warned the Tatar not to listen to the devil's temptations about family, home, or freedom. To illustrate his point, Semyon began telling the story of a gentleman who had been exiled to Siberia years ago.
The story of the gentleman settler
Semyon told the Tatar about a gentleman who had been sent to Siberia fifteen years ago for forging a will. The man, possibly a prince or baron, had initially embraced his new life as a settler, buying land in Muhortinskoe and working hard by mowing and fishing.
However, Vassily Sergeyitch soon began longing for his former life, regularly riding to Gyrino to check for mail and money from Russia. Semyon had warned him that wanting money would only lead to wanting more things, but the gentleman didn't listen.
Two years later, Vassily Sergeyitch's wife arrived with their baby daughter. He was overjoyed and boasted that people could live well even in Siberia. But his happiness was short-lived as he began spending extravagantly to provide his wife with every comfort, entertaining officials and furnishing their home with luxuries.
The spoiled lady from Petersburg couldn't adapt to the harsh Siberian conditions. After three years, she fled with a young official in spectacles. Vassily Sergeyitch pursued them for five days but failed to catch them. When he returned, he beat his head against the ferry boards while Semyon mockingly reminded him of his earlier boast about Siberian happiness.
For the next eight years, Vassily Sergeyitch desperately sought permission to return to Russia, sending petitions and spending hundreds of roubles on telegrams. He sold his land and mortgaged his house to the Jews, growing thin and sickly in the process.
"So you see what Siberian happiness is, damn its soul! You see how people can live in Siberia... He'll hang himself from grief or run away to Russia—that's a sure thing. He'll run away and they'll catch him."
The Tatars perspective on life, love, and suffering
Eventually, Vassily Sergeyitch found new purpose in his daughter, who had grown into a beautiful young woman with black eyebrows and a lively disposition. He doted on her and proudly showed her off, claiming she was proof that happiness existed even in Siberia.
But the girl developed consumption and began to fade. Vassily Sergeyitch spent a fortune seeking doctors from hundreds of miles away, but Semyon believed it was all futile - she would die regardless, and her father would either hang himself from grief or attempt to escape to Russia.
The Tatar, shivering with cold, disagreed with Semyon's cynical outlook. He exclaimed that even brief happiness was better than nothing at all. The three years Vassily Sergeyitch had with his wife and the time with his daughter were gifts, not failures.
"What is good?" asked Canny. "His wife, his daughter... What of prison and what of sorrow!—anyway, he did see his wife and his daughter... 'Nothing' is bad, but three years is good. How not understand?"
The Tatar said that God forbid one should fall sick and die in a strange land... that if his wife came to him for one day, even for one hour, that for such happiness he would be ready to bear any suffering and to thank God.
Confrontation on the ferry crossing
As dawn approached, the Tatar began dreaming of his home in Simbirsk province, imagining that he was there with his wife and mother. His pleasant reverie was interrupted by shouts from the opposite bank calling for the ferry.
Most likely it was all a dream, thought the Tatar. He felt that he was asleep and heard his own snoring... Of course he was at home in the Simbirsk province, and he had only to call his wife by name for her to answer.
The ferrymen reluctantly roused themselves and rowed across the river. On the other bank stood Vassily Sergeyitch in a fox fur coat and white lambskin cap. With a gloomy expression, he explained he was hurrying to Anastasyevka where a new doctor might help his daughter.
As they transported him back across the river, Vassily Sergeyitch remained silent and motionless. When they reached the other side, Semyon mockingly repeated the gentleman's earlier words about living well in Siberia and cynically remarked on the futility of seeking medical help.
After Vassily Sergeyitch departed, the Tatar confronted Semyon with unexpected passion. He declared that Semyon was bad while the gentleman was good. The Tatar argued that God created humans to experience joy, grief, and sorrow - to be alive - while Semyon, wanting nothing, was like stone or clay, unloved by God.
The ferrymen laughed at the Tatar's outburst. Contemptuous of their reaction, he returned to the campfire while the others retreated to the hut. As they lay down to sleep, the door remained open, letting in snow and cold air, but no one bothered to close it. From outside came sounds like a dog howling - it was the Tatar crying. Semyon simply remarked that the Tatar would get used to it, then fell asleep.