Mire (Chekhov)
Short summary
Russian countryside, late 19th century. Lieutenant Alexandr Grigoryevitch Sokolsky visited a vodka distillery to collect a debt from Susanna Moiseyevna, a wealthy Jewess, on behalf of his cousin Alexey Ivanovitch Kryukov.
Sokolsky needed the money for his own marriage deposit. Susanna initially agreed to pay but suddenly stole the IOUs. After a physical struggle, she refused to return them and invited him to stay for lunch. Seduced by her cynical charm, the lieutenant forgot about the debt and stayed.
When Sokolsky failed to return, Kryukov went to the distillery himself, intending to confront Susanna. Despite his initial anger, he too fell under her spell and returned home in high spirits.
A week later, Kryukov returned to the distillery out of boredom. There he discovered his cousin, who had never left. Shocked at finding Sokolsky there,
"What can I say to him? What?" thought Alexey Ivanovitch. "How can I judge him since I'm here myself?" And clearing his throat without uttering a word, he went out slowly.
Both men had fallen victim to Susanna's manipulative charm, unable to resist her despite their better judgment.
Detailed summary
Division into sections is editorial.
Lieutenant Sokolskys arrival at Susanna Moiseyevnas estate
A young officer in a snow-white tunic rode into the yard of a vodka distillery owned by the heirs of M. E. Rothstein. After dismounting, he handed his card to a haughty maidservant. The card bore the name Alexandr Grigoryevitch Sokolsky. Initially, the mistress refused to see him, but after his insistence that his business was urgent, she relented.
The lieutenant was led through several luxuriously furnished rooms to a large square chamber filled with plants and flowers. The overwhelming scent of jasmine permeated the air. There, reclining in a large chair with her head wrapped in a woolen shawl, was Susanna Moiseyevna. Only her pale, aquiline nose and one large dark eye were visible behind the wrappings. Her ample Chinese dressing gown concealed her figure, though from her voice and visible features, she appeared to be in her late twenties.
The lieutenant explained that he came on behalf of his cousin, Alexey Ivanovitch Kryukov, who requested early payment for oats purchased by Susanna's late father. Though payment wasn't due until the following week, the lieutenant needed the money urgently. As they conversed, Sokolsky noticed the disorderly state of the room, which appeared to be Susanna's bedroom, with unmade bed and feminine garments strewn about.
"What a strange woman! She talks fluently, but... far too much, and too freely. She must be neurotic... There was a chilliness about it such as one finds in waiting rooms at stations, in clubs, and foyers at the theatres."
The struggle over the IOUs and Sokolskys seduction
Susanna agreed to provide the money and led the lieutenant to her study. While unlocking an ingenious cupboard with multiple locks, she chatted freely about her Jewish heritage and her contradictory feelings about it. She expressed her dislike for hoarding money, claiming she preferred to live more like a hussar than a traditional Jew.
"I am a Jewess, you know, to the marrow of my bones. I am passionately fond of Shmuls and Yankels, but how I loathe that passion for gain in our Semitic blood. They hoard and they don't know what they are hoarding for."
As Susanna was about to open her portfolio containing the money, her demeanor suddenly changed. Her face became distorted with a spiteful, catlike expression. While maintaining eye contact with the lieutenant, she swiftly snatched his I.O.U.s from the table and attempted to hide them in her pocket.
Such an extraordinary transition from good-natured laughter to crime so appalled him that he turned pale and stepped back... And she, still keeping her frightened, searching eyes upon him, felt along her hip with her clenched fist for her pocket.
Shocked by this sudden theft, the lieutenant instinctively grabbed her arm. A physical struggle ensued as he tried to recover the papers without hurting her. Despite his efforts to be gentle, the intensity of her resistance forced him to hold her firmly, leading to an intimate physical confrontation.
"In silence, breathing heavily, stumbling against the furniture, they moved about the room. Susanna was carried away by the struggle. She flushed, closed her eyes, and forgetting herself, once even pressed her face against the face of the lieutenant."
After the lieutenant finally caught her hand and found it empty, he released her. Both flushed and disheveled, they stared at each other, breathing hard. Susanna's spiteful expression had been replaced by a good-natured smile. She calmly sat down at the lunch table and drank some port wine. When the lieutenant demanded the return of the I.O.U.s, she refused, dismissing his moral objections and mocking his desire to marry. Frustrated but increasingly intrigued by her audacity, the lieutenant eventually joined her for lunch, forgetting about the stolen papers.
The lieutenants return and confession to his cousin
The lieutenant returned to his cousin's house only the following morning, looking extremely crumpled and confused. He asked to speak with Kryukov privately and, once alone, confessed what had happened with the I.O.U.s. Kryukov was furious, standing with his feet wide apart and flinging up his hands in disbelief.
He berated the lieutenant for allowing Susanna to commit a crime and then becoming intimate with her. The lieutenant, blinking guiltily, admitted he couldn't understand how it happened himself. He described Susanna as a monster unlike any woman he had ever met, whose insolence and cynicism had an inexplicable effect on him. Kryukov continued to express his disgust at the lieutenant's weakness, especially given his engagement to another woman.
The lieutenant expressed shame and regret, particularly about having to ask his aunt for the five thousand roubles he needed for his marriage deposit. After venting his initial anger, Kryukov sat down and began to mock his cousin for his poor judgment as a prospective bridegroom.
Kryukovs mission to retrieve the IOUs
Suddenly, Kryukov leapt up, declaring he would not let the matter rest. Determined to recover the I.O.U.s, he ordered his servant Mishka to prepare his racing droshky. Despite the lieutenant's agitation, Kryukov quickly dressed and drove off to confront Susanna Moiseyevna, leaving his cousin behind.
The lieutenant fell asleep while his cousin was away. By dinner time, Kryukov had not returned, and his wife began to worry. They assumed he must be playing cards at the tenant's house and would likely stay the night there. However, Kryukov only returned the following morning.
Without greeting anyone, Kryukov rushed straight to his study. When the lieutenant followed him and asked about the outcome, Kryukov flopped onto the sofa and burst into laughter. Instead of retrieving the I.O.U.s, he too had fallen under Susanna's spell.
Kryukov described how he had arrived at Susanna's house like an "avenging Jove," threatening her with the law and the Governor. Initially, she cried and offered to return the money, but then began discussing politics, criticizing women, and complimenting Kryukov's appearance. Like his cousin before him, Kryukov had been captivated by her and had only just managed to escape.
The cousins buried their heads in pillows, laughing at their shared predicament. They teased each other - Kryukov mocking the lieutenant for being engaged, while the lieutenant ridiculed Kryukov for being a respected married man and father. They agreed to split the financial loss between them and to tell Kryukov's wife that he had been at the tenant's house.
At dinner, they exchanged veiled allusions and winked at each other, frequently bursting into laughter. After dinner, they dressed as Turks and played soldiers with the children. In the evening, they engaged in a heated argument about whether accepting a dowry with one's wife was contemptible. Both men drank heavily before retiring to bed, where they slept soundly.
The irresistible pull of Susanna
Life continued peacefully for about a week. Neither cousin mentioned Susanna Moiseyevna or the I.O.U.s, though both remembered the incident with pleasure, like a curious farce they would recall in old age. On the sixth or seventh day, the lieutenant asked Kryukov for a saddle-horse. Recognizing his intention, Kryukov instead gave him five thousand roubles and advised him to leave immediately.
"Once a month one needs something to brighten one up... something out of the common round, something that would give the stagnant organism a good shaking up, a reaction... whether it's a drinking bout, or... Susanna. One can't get on without it."
A week later, Kryukov himself drove to Susanna's estate. Arriving at the house, he found it filled with men - landowners and officials he knew. When Susanna saw him, she greeted him warmly. In her study, Kryukov was shocked to discover his cousin, the lieutenant, sitting with a fat, flabby-looking Jew. Both men were embarrassed by this unexpected encounter. Without a word, Kryukov turned and left, unable to judge his cousin since he was there himself.
The sense of decency was stirred in Kryukov and the blood rushed to his head. Overwhelmed with amazement, shame, and anger, he walked up to the table without a word... "How can I judge him since I'm here myself?"