The Seagull

In the dining room at Sorin’s house, Masha tells Trigorin that she has decided to “tear the love out of [her] heart, just tear it out by the roots” (37). She is to marry Medvedenko, even though she does not love him, as a way to forget her broken heart. Trigorin notices Masha is drinking heavily again and comments on it, but Masha shrugs him off. She sees her fate as set in stone, and is determined to see her plan through, even if it means continuing to keep the pain at bay with her alcohol and snuff.

Nina, meanwhile, is at a crossroads in her life. As a game, she holds a fist to Trigorin and asks him to guess odd or even. He picks even and she replies “Wrong. That means ‘No’. I’m trying to decide whether or not to go on the stage. If only somebody would tell me what to do” (39). Trigorin warns her that this is a decision only she can make for herself. Nina then presents Trigorin with another decision of his own to make when she gives him a parting gift. She presents him with a gold medallion that has his initials engraved on one side of it, and on the other side is the title of one of his books. Trigorin is touched by her gift—he must soon choose between Arkadina and the blossoming affair with Nina.

Upon hearing Arkadina approaching, Nina leaves, begging Trigorin for a few minutes alone before he leaves for town. Arkadina enters with Yakov, one of the workers on the estate. They are packing to leave, and Trigorin’s impending departure begins to feel even more real. Sorin enters and asks to go with them to town, but Arkadina shuts down the idea and tells him he must stay in the country. She tells Sorin, “Keep an eye on my son […] I’m going, and I still don’t know why Konstantin tried to shoot himself. I think it was mostly jealousy” (40).

Sorin defends his nephew, saying that Konstantin feels financially insecure and artistically suffocated in the country. He wonders if Arkadina might send Konstantin abroad, or at the very least give her son some money for a proper wardrobe, since the boy’s clothes are in shambles. Arkadina insists that she does not have any money to give him. Sorin laughs at her, then apologizes, praising her generosity.

As he is laughing, Sorin suddenly becomes dizzy and begins to stagger a bit. Arkadina calls for help, and Konstantin enters with a bandage on his head to grab his uncle. He tells his mother that Sorin gets these dizzy spells at times, but it is nothing to worry about. He tells Sorin to go lie down, but Sorin still wants to go to town. Eventually Sorin agrees to rest, leaving Arkadina and Konstantin alone. Arkadina mentions that Sorin’s frailty scares her, and Konstantin tells her that “[l]iving in the country isn’t good for him. […] It gets him down. Now, if you had a fit of generosity and lent him a couple of thousand, he’d be able to live in town all year round” (42-43). Again, Arkadina replies that she has no money to give, since she is an actress.

Konstantin asks Arkadina to change out the bandage on his head, since no one does it as nicely as she does. Arkadina makes him promise that he will not try to shoot himself again while she is away, and he tells her he won’t. In a sudden burst of affection, Konstantin grabs his mother’s hands and kisses them, reminiscing about when he was a little boy. He asks her if she remembers when a washerwoman in their building was hurt, and that Arkadina was “always going in to see her, [she] brought her the medicine, [and] used to wash her children in her washtub” (43). Arkadina tells him she does not remember, but she does remember the two dancers who used to come have coffee with them.

Konstantin basks in the tenderness of his mother changing out his bandage. He tells her, “These last few days, I’ve loved you as tenderly and trustfully as when I was little […] Only, why do you let that man have such a hold over you?” (44). Arkadina assures him he does not know Trigorin, but he is a noble man. Konstantin scoffs at this, saying he is probably wooing Nina behind their backs at that very instant, and his books are not good at all. Arkadina warns Konstantin not to speak of Trigorin like that in her presence, saying he is only envious of her lover because he is talented, and Konstantin is not. This remark enrages Konstantin, who retorts, “You hacks and mediocrities have grabbed all the best places for yourselves and you think the kind of art you do is the only kind that counts” (44). He tells her he does not buy the illusion she and Trigorin are selling of being the best and most talented.

The fight builds until finally Konstantin breaks down crying, and Arkadina holds him in an embrace. He admits the true source of his anger is, first and foremost, the loss of Nina, his true love. Arkadina assures him Nina will love Konstantin again after Trigorin leaves. She asks if the two of them can make up and then tells him he should make things right with Trigorin before he leaves, too. Konstantin ponders it, but ultimately cannot bring himself to face his rival. He exits as Trigorin enters.

Trigorin is distracted when he approaches Arkadina. She tells him that everything is almost packed, and they will be leaving soon. Trigorin asks her if they can stay one more day, but Arkadina says no, because she knows he wants to stay to be with Nina. Trigorin begs her to let him stay, saying, “It’s as if I’m being called to her—perhaps this is the one thing that’s always been missing from my life” (46). He tells her that he never pursued romance like this in his youth, since he was always so focused on writing and editing. Now that he has found Nina, he does not want to leave her.

This infuriates Arkadina, who replies, “Am I really so old and ugly that you think you can prattle to me about other women without any shame?” (47). She then moves to kiss him, telling him she cannot live without his love. Trigorin weakly tries to resist, saying someone could come in and see them. Arkadina continues as she does not care if they do see. She tells him, “[Y]ou’re the best writer there is—you’re the only hope for writing in Russia!” (48). He must return to town and share his gift with everyone, instead of spending his days out in the countryside with an unknown actress. Trigorin begins to crumble at her praise and gives in to Arkadina, agreeing to leave with her willingly.

She convinces him to go just in time, as Shamraev shortly enters to tell them the carriages await them. Everyone bids them goodbye as they prepare to leave the estate. Trigorin realizes he has left his walking stick behind and leaves to find it. Nina approaches him and tells him that she has made up her mind to leave for a new life in Moscow. Trigorin tells her to meet him there at a hotel, and they kiss, knowing they will soon meet again.