Ivan Matveyitch (Chekhov)
Short summary
A man of learning waited impatiently in his study for his chronically late amanuensis, Ivan Matveyitch. When the young man finally arrived, he apologized, explaining he had been at his aunt's name-day party. Despite his initial anger, the scholar helped Ivan remove his scarf and began dictating work.
Their work was frequently interrupted by Ivan's digressions about high school uniforms, spring weather in his southern hometown, and his methods for catching tarantulas. The scholar, though initially frustrated, showed interest in these stories, asking questions and offering advice about Ivan's future.
The scholar was shocked to learn Ivan hadn't read Gogol and promised to lend him the books. Eventually, he gave up on dictating for the day but invited Ivan to stay longer.
There are moments when he even fancies that the man of learning is becoming attached to him, used to him, and that if he scolds him for being late, it's simply because he misses his chatter about tarantulas.
Ivan stayed, reluctant to return to his cold, impoverished home where his father would be grumbling, preferring the warmth and interest he found in the scholar's study.
Detailed summary
Division into chapters is editorial.
The impatient scholar awaits his tardy secretary
Between five and six in the evening, a man of learning sat in his study nervously biting his nails. He was extremely irritated by the lateness of his secretary, who was habitually two to three hours late. The scholar considered this tardiness a grave disrespect for his time and work.
"It's positively revolting," he says, continually looking at his watch. "It shows the utmost disrespect for another man's time and work. In England such a person would not earn a farthing, he would die of hunger."
Needing to vent his frustration, the scholar went to his wife's room and complained about the secretary who had been recommended to him by Pyotr Danilitch. He declared his intention to scold the young man severely when he arrived.
Katya reminded her husband that he made the same threats daily, yet continued to employ the secretary. The scholar insisted that today would be different, as he had finally made up his mind to take action.
Ivan Matveyitch arrives with excuses and stories
At last, the doorbell rang. The scholar composed himself, drew himself up, and went to the entry where his amanuensis, Ivan Matveyitch, was already standing by the hatstand. The young man of eighteen had an oval face with no mustache and wore a shabby overcoat without galoshes. He was carefully wiping his muddy boots on the doormat while trying to hide a hole in one boot that revealed a white sock.
Upon seeing the scholar, Ivan Matveyitch smiled broadly and extended a wet hand in greeting, asking about the man's sore throat. The scholar, however, was in no mood for pleasantries. He grabbed Ivan by the shoulders and began shaking him, expressing his despair at the young man's chronic tardiness.
"What a way to treat me!" he says with despair in his voice. "You dreadful, horrid fellow, what a way to treat me! Are you laughing at me, are you jeering at me? Eh?"
Ivan Matveyitch was surprised by this reception, as his face had still held the remnants of a smile. He explained that he hadn't come directly from home but had attended his aunt's name-day party five miles away. The scholar found this excuse illogical and helped the young man remove his scarf, urging him to hurry to the study where everything was prepared for their work.
Beginning the dictation work amidst distractions
In the study, Ivan Matveyitch smoothed his bristling cropped hair and took up his pen. The scholar began pacing the room, concentrating before starting to dictate. He spoke of fundamental forms being conditioned by principles, using complex academic language with frequent commas and pauses.
Ivan Matveyitch suddenly interrupted the dictation to comment that high school boys now wore grey uniforms, whereas in his day they had worn regular uniforms. The scholar, irritated by this digression, asked Ivan to focus on the work. When he inquired about Ivan's education, the young man reminded him that he had left high school three years ago after completing the fourth class due to family circumstances.
The scholar then criticized Ivan's handwriting, noting that there should be at least forty letters per line. Ivan took offense, suggesting that if his work was unsatisfactory, the scholar could deduct from his pay. The scholar dismissed this, insisting that exactitude, not money, was the issue.
Conversations about tarantulas and education
A maidservant brought in tea and rusks. Ivan Matveyitch took his glass awkwardly with both hands and began drinking, though the tea was too hot. He ate several rusks with obvious hunger, making noises while swallowing that irritated the scholar.
The noise he makes in swallowing, the relish with which he smacks his lips, and the expression of hungry greed in his raised eyebrows irritate the man of learning. "Make haste and finish, time is precious."
Ivan admitted he was hungry after his walk. Their conversation turned to the weather, with Ivan mentioning that spring had already arrived in his southern homeland in the Don region, while it was still frosty in the scholar's northern location. He enthusiastically described catching tarantulas for fun in his native region, explaining how they used pitch on a thread to trap the spiders and then would pit them against another spider called a bihorka.
After dictating more text, the scholar asked if Ivan had found employment yet. The young man replied that he was considering volunteering for the army, though his father advised him to work in a chemist's shop instead. The scholar suggested that university would be better for him, though the examinations would be difficult.
When the scholar asked if Ivan read much, the young man admitted he did not. He had never read Gogol or Turgenev, which shocked the scholar. The man of learning insisted that Ivan must read Gogol and promised to lend him the works.
"Ivan Matveyitch! Aren't you ashamed? Aie! aie! You are such a nice fellow, so much that is original in you... you haven't even read Gogol! You must read him! I will give you his works! It's essential to read him!"
The comfortable study and reluctance to leave
A silence fell over the room. The scholar reclined on his lounge while Ivan became aware of the puddles his snowy boots had made on the floor. Feeling embarrassed, Ivan shifted his attention. The scholar attempted to resume dictation but soon gave up, suggesting they continue the next morning and warning Ivan not to be late.
Ivan Matveyitch stood up, feeling it was time to leave, but was reluctant to go. The scholar's study was warm, comfortable, and pleasant compared to his own home. He thought about the poverty, hunger, and cold that awaited him there, along with his grumbling father's scoldings.
At home there is poverty, hunger, cold, his grumbling father, scoldings, and here it is so quiet and unruffled, and interest even is taken in his tarantulas and birds.
The scholar glanced at his watch and picked up a book. As Ivan prepared to leave, he reminded the scholar about the promised Gogol books. The man of learning encouraged him to stay longer and talk. Ivan sat down with a broad smile, feeling something extraordinarily soft and welcoming in the scholar's manner. He sensed that perhaps the scholar had grown attached to him and only scolded him for being late because he missed their conversations about tarantulas and goldfinches.