Three Years

Anton Chekhov (1860 - 1904)
Translated by Constance Garnett (1861 - 1946)

Laptev, the rich but unattractive scion of a merchant, renounces his independent-minded, intelligent, devoted, but equally unattractive mistress Polina in order to marry the beautiful young gold-digger Yulia. Their life together quickly deteriorates into a loveless agony, Laptev seeking some sort of meaning in his life while Yulia whiles away her youth with the sparkling young Moscow social scene. The compelling question of the story is whether or not Laptev and Yulia can redeem something of lasting value from what seems to be a hopelessly empty relationship. Here Chekhov again explores the subtle dilemmas of modern conventional marriage and its effects, both positive and negative, on the hapless humans caught up in it. (summary by Expatriate)

Genre(s): Literary Fiction

Language: English

Group: Chekhov's Novellas

Section Chapter Reader Time
Play 01 Chapter 01 Expatriate
00:26:09
Play 02 Chapter 02 Expatriate
00:09:20
Play 03 Chapter 03 Expatriate
00:09:20
Play 04 Chapter 04 Expatriate
00:14:56
Play 05 Chapter 05 Expatriate
00:14:48
Play 06 Chapter 06 Expatriate
00:07:36
Play 07 Chapter 07 Expatriate
00:15:14
Play 08 Chapter 08 Expatriate
00:06:59
Play 09 Chapter 09 Expatriate
00:11:06
Play 10 Chapter 10 Expatriate
00:17:10
Play 11 Chapter 11 Expatriate
00:09:58
Play 12 Chapter 12 Expatriate
00:06:58
Play 13 Chapter 13 Expatriate
00:12:00
Play 14 Chapter 14 Expatriate
00:11:54
Play 15 Chapter 15 Expatriate
00:13:56
Play 16 Chapter 16 Expatriate
00:08:18
Play 17 Chapter 17 Expatriate
00:11:40