The Darling

The Russian short story in the late 19th century was heavily concerned with social, ethical, and religious questions, evident in the works of authors such as Leo Tolstoy. Tolstoy’s late stories, like “Master and Man” and “Three Hermits,” for instance, reject the hierarchical Christianity of the Russian Orthodox Church in favor of Tolstoy’s particular interpretation of Christian anarchism—a political theology articulated in his book The Kingdom of God is Within You, which holds that God is the only legitimate authority over human lives. Chekhov, on the other hand, was criticized by his peers for not taking a strong stance in many of his stories, and “The Darling” is an example of this detached outlook. Part of what makes the story difficult to link to movements of the time, such as anti-poverty and feminist campaigns, is Chekhov’s style. He was highly innovative in using free-indirect style to layer the story with his characters’ opinions rather than his own, and since Olga never thinks about these larger problems, they go unmentioned. Though other characters leave the unnamed town, Olga never does; the story’s perspective sticks with her, limiting readers’ views to focus entirely on day-to-day provincial life.