The Progression: An Analysis of Dr. Yefimitch in Chekov’s "Ward No. 6"

Quinn Tabler

Elizabeth Chappel

Pre-AP English 10

13 May 2013

The Progression: An Analysis of Dr. Yefimitch in Chekov’s "Ward No. 6"

As the story progresses Dr. Andrey Yefimitch begins to adopt a new personality that shows signs of spiritual, mental, and emotional changes. These changes ultimately land him his own spot in a hospiatl where he was once given the responsibility to care for it's patients. The order and time in which these events take place is debatable and can be argued due to one's perception of the text.

Dr. Yefimitch was far from what one would call an honest man. Throughout his profession, the doctor manipulated and decieved others with his doctoring. He did this to the extent of cluelessly prescribing patients with remedies and medication that even he himself knew to be pointless. I feel like because he was conscious to the foul acts taking place, that it contributed to his madness, and ultimately, his admission into the insane asylum.

In the short story, it was said that Andrey would be found lying on his couch, with his "his face to the cushion," for long durations of time. This behavior was a warning sign that something about his personality or persona was quite off. I feel like this behavior can be contributed to his finnancial issueshe was facing at the time. "He was mortified that after more than twenty years of service he had been neither given a pension nor assistance." Dr. Yefimitch was in debt , having spent the last of his roubles on alcohol which also didn't contribute to his sanity. This lack of money angered the doctor and was an immensly key part of his outbreaks and posistion in the hospital.

It was said throughout the story that Dr. Andrey didn't "understand suffereing" because of his isolation from it and his keen ability to look past it. Guilt is a strong emotion and just happens to be part of what got the best of the doctor. The doctor's guilt for his past ignorance when over-looking others suffereing tore him to pieces as he finally snapped out of his dillusional state of mind toward the end of the book. Once he has finally had enough of it and ends up in the ward, he gets the opportunity to experience it first hand. This only adds to the suffering that this sad, washed up doctor had to live with for the rest of his life.

Dr. Andrey Yefimitch's fate was a direct result of his past actions. He was a dishonest, unhelpful man that ended up in a place he deserved to be. These changes in the doctor were to be seen from the beginning to the end of the story, although the clarity of their effect on the doctor is made more aparent further toward the end. Andrey changed in a way that caused him actual mental illness, and that devoured him emotionally.

　

The Bolshevik Revolution

Click here to view my presentation.

Most Prominent Theme of "Cry the Beloved Country."

       Paton's "Cry, The beloved Country" is an eventful novel filled with twists and turns. The book contains so many more things than most novels. But the thing that is most unique about this story is the number of themes to which is contains. These wide array of themes are really what sets this book apart.

        One of the first themes I would like to dicuss would be inequality. As Kumalo searches for his long lost son, Absalom, social inequalities take place all around him. During this time period that this book depicts, segregation against black South Africans is in it's prime. These people are facing racism at it's source and this inner twines with Kumalo's search for his son. Absalom finds himself caught up in this storm of inequalities as a black South African himself, and as a result, turns to crime when jobs become scarce. A lot of the negative aspects of this story can be traced back to inequalities.

        In this novel, church, christianity, and injustice are all discussed or expressed quite often. Kumalo faces so many hardships throughout this time period, and church always seems to be his fallback or what he looks for to find solitude. In a specific instance in the book, Kumalo's faith is almost broken when he finds out that his son is responsible for the murder of an innocent man. His fellow Priests are there for him and remind him that prayer can go a long way. Kumalo takes there advice and almost comes to terms with his life and recent events that would tear the normal mn down.

        Christianity and injustice have a direct relationship. John Kumalo makes a comment that black priests are paid less than white ones. Arthur Jarvis agrees with him and talks about more injustice incolving blacks, whites, and christianity. I feel like these are among the most prominent themes in the novel and are very worthy of such discussion.

        Cry, the Beloved Country is a social protest against the structures of the society that would later give rise to apartheid. Paton depicts the Whites as affected by "native crime", while the Blacks suffer from social ineqaulity and moral issues due to the breakdown of the tribal system. It shows many of the problems with South Africa such as the degrading of the land reserved for the natives, which is sometimes considered to be the main theme, the movement away from the tribal community, native crime, and the flight to the urban areas. I feel like fear affects the characters and society of South Africa the most.

         As I explained in the beginning, this book can be connected to many different themes. That is what makes it so unique and sets it apart. Christianity, church, racism, all around injustice, and fear can all be easily found and used to label this novel.  I feel like these are among the most prominent themes in the novel and that is the exact reason I decided to discuss them.

The Hunt

Tabler1

Quinn Tabler

19 November 2012

Ms. Harmon

Pre AP English 10

　

　

The Hunt

I feel a strong hand touch my back, it is my father’s hand. I do not know where I am,
this is because it is 2:00 AM and I’m not accustomed to waking up in the middle of the night. “Quinn, you have to get up, we have a long drive ahead of us.” I roll over in my bed . I can barely open my eyes. I don’t know about this deer hunting stuff, I haven’t even gotten into the deer stand and I already hate it! I fight through my tiredness and begin to get ready to leave.

Startled and confused I am once again awakened by my father’s hand, this time I am in our stand. My father puts his fingers to his lips as to hint that we need to be quiet. I don’t move because I’m aware a deer must be nearby. I am just a young boy and this is the first time I will have ever seen a deer in a deer stand. I am instantly flushed with excitement, but I still manage to maintain my composure. I can hear the animals moving across the frozen ground, crunching the frost bitten leaves as they travel. I still cannot see them, however I know there is more than one. It is cold, so cold I can see my breath as it escapes from my mouth. Finally, one steps into my line of view and I study the female deer from head to toe. I follow her every move and I can see her breath to, and I wonder if she thinks it is as cold as I do? There are three other female deer that appear, the lead doe makes an odd sound and they all dash back into the woods. Even though I was not presented with a shot, I am still ecstatic with my first hunting experience.

It is a cold November morning, it is my birthday, but this is unlike any other birthdays I’ve celebrated. There are no friends or family surrounding me as I open my neatly wrapped presents and devour my artistically decorated birthday cake; I am in a deer stand. Patiently I’m waiting on what I have been dreaming about since I was introduced to this time consuming sport. I love every minute of it, the planning, packing, traveling, and anticipation of the hunt. I am accompanied by my father, who is my partner in crime during these adventures.

I am quickly awakened from my trance, it is by my father’s strong hand. He is shaking me while voicing his excitement as he sees a deer approaching from the distance. “It’s a buck!” It’s a big buck!” I grab my gun, this is the moment I have been anticipating. I stand up without even realizing it and prepare for the shot I’m ready to take. The buck is at a slow trot now. I focus my scope on the mammoth animal, I tighten my grip, hold my breath, and squeeze the trigger ever so slightly. As the sound of the explosion echo’s through the valley, the sound of the loud thud of the deer hitting the frozen ground accompanies it. This is it, after three years of effort and patience, I have succeeded!

The Beginning

          Reading has been around longer than most of us can imagine. Reading is probably one of our most important skillsin today's world. That is why most people have a vivid memory of the first time they picked up a book and recited the words on the pages. For me, this is more than a memory.
          Like any kid I can say that I began to read consistently once I started to learn more throughout school. Although this is true, my frist experiences with reading began long before school started for me. You could describe me as a kid who was anxious to learn in my younger days as I am now. That went for anything; I was not just interested in reading. My mother caught on to this relatively quickly.
          I can remember the days back in pre-school when me and my mom would congrugate to the family couch for our nightly session of literature. I always looked forward to this fun filled nights of stories and imagination. Back then, the little stuff like this really meant a lot. First, the books in which she would read to me started off fairly simple. We soon moved on from these and upgraded to something a little more challenging for me to comprehend. I guess you could say that was partly my fault.
          We began to read books like "Harry Potter" and other things of that sort that were more advanced. I can remember as she would read these books to me, I would stare at the pages filled with words and give my best effort to follow along. I guess you could say that these sessions helped me out a lot because one summer afternoon, I remember when I picked up my first book that I would read completely independently. That book just happened to be from "The Bernstein Bears" series, which is one of my favorite childhood series. I remember exactly where I was, how everything looked around me, and where my mother was sitting. This is all probably due to my excitement and the intensity of how important this event was to me. As I sat on our kitchen floor , I read back the words printed on the paper with pride. I was estatic! I had read my first book!
         This is more than a memory to me. This was the beginning of my love of reading. This was just the beginning. I have to give credit to my mom for jump starting this love of reading for me and always encouraging it and supporting me.
         

I Am A Baseball Player

I am an optimistic baseball player.
I wonder if I will ever fufill my dreams.
I hear the sound of announcers and loud fans.
I see the bright lights from above.
I want to be a winner.
I am an optimistic baseball player

I pretend that I have already made it to the big leagues.
I feel like I have the weight of the world on my shoulders.
I touch the dirt beneath my feet.
I worry that I am not good enough.
I cry when I think about failure.
I am an optimistic baseball player.

I understand that my chances are slim.
I say that I am better than I really am.
I dream about becoming a professional.
I try my hardest to become the best I can be.
I hope my hard work will pay off.
I am an optimistic baseball player.

The True Meaning

                “The Handsomest Drowned Man In The World” is an old magical realism tale that really just consists of an enormous man that once washed up on. But really, is that all that is to this story.

                Although the man washing up on shore seems to be all this story is cracked up to be; you have ask yourself what the actual message is that the author is trying to get across, and also what he means by it.

                In one part of the story the woman of the small village of “twenty-odd wooden cottages” are peering over the man that washed up on shore, who was already assaigned the name of “Esteban.” Esteban is already labled as a perfect being. Words, like magnificent, strong, and huge are useed to describe his perfection. All this perfection, crammed into one person  causes a lot of envy among the woman in the miniscule village. Esteban is compared to all of the men in the village and to top it all off, they all confessed their actual doubt for their men.

                Later on, Esteban is sent to sea and something critical in the story’s message is brought to the story. The author seemed to almost explain how the villagers improved themselves after Esteban left the village. I think this all derives from Esteban's greatness and perfection. I think that the women realized that perfection like Esteban's is impossible to achieve and not only them, but their men also can only shoot for an improvement that is as close to perfection as possible to attain. That's what I really love about this story, the lesson behind it. So if you actually begin to think about the true meanings of this story, I believe you will quickly realize it is not just a story about an enormous man that washed up on shore.