A Work Of Art
by Anton Chekhov
A Work Of Art (1886) follows a bronze candelabra of dubious taste as it passes from owner to owner—each person desperate to get rid of it, none willing to admit why. "It would be a pity to throw it away."
SASHA SMIRNOV, the only son of his mother, holding under his arm, something wrapped up in No. 223 of the Financial News, assumed a sentimental expression, and went into Dr. Koshelkov's consulting-room.
"Ah, dear lad!" was how the doctor greeted him. "Well! how are we feeling? What good news have you for me?"
Sasha blinked, laid his hand on his heart and said in an agitated voice: "Mamma sends her greetings to you, Ivan Nikolaevitch, and told me to thank you. . . . I am the only son of my mother and you have saved my life . . . you have brought me through a dangerous illness and . . . we do not know how to thank you."
"Nonsense, lad!" said the doctor, highly delighted. "I only did what anyone else would have done in my place."
"I am the only son of my mother . . . we are poor people and cannot of course repay you, and we are quite ashamed, doctor, although, however, mamma and I . . . the only son of my mother, earnestly beg you to accept in token of our gratitude . . . this object, which . . . An object of great value, an antique bronze. . . . A rare work of art."
"You shouldn't!" said the doctor, frowning. "What's this for!"
"No, please do not refuse," Sasha went on muttering as he unpacked the parcel. "You will wound mamma and me by refusing. . . . It's a fine thing . . . an antique bronze. . . . It was left us by my deceased father and we have kept it as a precious souvenir. My father used to buy antique bronzes and sell them to connoisseurs . . . Mamma and I keep on the business now."
Sasha undid the object and put it solemnly on the table. It was a not very tall candelabra of old bronze and artistic workmanship. It consisted of a group: on the pedestal stood two female figures in the costume of Eve and in attitudes for the description of which I have neither the courage nor the fitting temperament. The figures were smiling coquettishly and altogether looked as though, had it not been for the necessity of supporting the candlestick, they would have skipped off the pedestal and have indulged in an orgy such as is improper for the reader even to imagine.
Looking at the present, the doctor slowly scratched behind his ear, cleared his throat and blew his nose irresolutely.
"Yes, it certainly is a fine thing," he muttered, "but . . . how shall I express it? . . . it's . . . h'm . . . it's not quite for family reading. It's not simply decollet but beyond anything, dash it all. . . ."
"How do you mean?"
"The serpent-tempter himself could not have invented anything worse. . . . Why, to put such a phantasmagoria on the table would be defiling the whole flat."
"What a strange way of looking at art, doctor!" said Sasha, offended. "Why, it is an artistic thing, look at it! There is so much beauty and elegance that it fills one's soul with a feeling of reverence and brings a lump into one's throat! When one sees anything so beautiful one forgets everything earthly. . . . Only look, how much movement, what an atmosphere, what expression!"
"I understand all that very well, my dear boy," the doctor interposed, "but you know I am a family man, my children run in here, ladies come in."
"Of course if you look at it from the point of view of the crowd," said Sasha, "then this exquisitely artistic work may appear in a certain light. . . . But, doctor, rise superior to the crowd, especially as you will wound mamma and me by refusing it. I am the only son of my mother, you have saved my life. . . . We are giving you the thing most precious to us and . . . and I only regret that I have not the pair to present to you. . . ."
"Thank you, my dear fellow, I am very grateful . . . Give my respects to your mother but really consider, my children run in here, ladies come. . . . However, let it remain! I see there's no arguing with you."
"And there is nothing to argue about," said Sasha, relieved. "Put the candlestick here, by this vase. What a pity we have not the pair to it! It is a pity! Well, good-bye, doctor."
After Sasha's departure the doctor looked for a long time at the candelabra, scratched behind his ear and meditated.
"It's a superb thing, there's no denying it," he thought, "and it would be a pity to throw it away. . . . But it's impossible for me to keep it. . . . H'm! . . . Here's a problem! To whom can I make a present of it, or to what charity can I give it?"
After long meditation he thought of his good friend, the lawyer Uhov, to whom he was indebted for the management of legal business.
"Excellent," the doctor decided, "it would be awkward for him as a friend to take money from me, and it will be very suitable for me to present him with this. I will take him the devilish thing! Luckily he is a bachelor and easy-going."
Without further procrastination the doctor put on his hat and coat, took the candelabra and went off to Uhov's.
"How are you, friend!" he said, finding the lawyer at home. "I've come to see you . . . to thank you for your efforts. . . . You won't take money so you must at least accept this thing here. . . . See, my dear fellow. . . . The thing is magnificent!"
On seeing the bronze the lawyer was moved to indescribable delight.
"What a specimen!" he chuckled. "Ah, deuce take it, to think of them imagining such a thing, the devils! Exquisite! Ravishing! Where did you get hold of such a delightful thing?"
After pouring out his ecstasies the lawyer looked timidly towards the door and said: "Only you must carry off your present, my boy. . . . I can't take it. . . ."
"Why?" cried the doctor, disconcerted.
"Why . . . because my mother is here at times, my clients . . . besides I should be ashamed for my servants to see it."
"Nonsense! Nonsense! Don't you dare to refuse!" said the doctor, gesticulating. "It's piggish of you! It's a work of art! . . . What movement. . . what expression! I won't even talk of it! You will offend me!"
"If one could plaster it over or stick on fig-leaves . . . "
But the doctor gesticulated more violently than before, and dashing out of the flat went home, glad that he had succeeded in getting the present off his hands.
When he had gone away the lawyer examined the candelabra, fingered it all over, and then, like the doctor, racked his brains over the question what to do with the present.
"It's a fine thing," he mused, "and it would be a pity to throw it away and improper to keep it. The very best thing would be to make a present of it to someone. . . . I know what! I'll take it this evening to Shashkin, the comedian. The rascal is fond of such things, and by the way it is his benefit tonight."
No sooner said than done. In the evening the candelabra, carefully wrapped up, was duly carried to Shashkin's. The whole evening the comic actor's dressing-room was besieged by men coming to admire the present; the dressing-room was filled with the hum of enthusiasm and laughter like the neighing of horses. If one of the actresses approached the door and asked: "May I come in?" the comedian's husky voice was heard at once: "No, no, my dear, I am not dressed!"
After the performance the comedian shrugged his shoulders, flung up his hands and said: "Well what am I to do with the horrid thing? Why, I live in a private flat! Actresses come and see me! It's not a photograph that you can put in a drawer!"
"You had better sell it, sir," the hairdresser who was disrobing the actor advised him. "There's an old woman living about here who buys antique bronzes. Go and enquire for Madame Smirnov . . . everyone knows her."
The actor followed his advice. . . . Two days later the doctor was sitting in his consulting-room, and with his finger to his brow was meditating on the acids of the bile. All at once the door opened and Sasha Smirnov flew into the room. He was smiling, beaming, and his whole figure was radiant with happiness. In his hands he held something wrapped up in newspaper.
"Doctor!" he began breathlessly, "imagine my delight! Happily for you we have succeeded in picking up the pair to your candelabra! Mamma is so happy. . . . I am the only son of my mother, you saved my life. . . ."
And Sasha, all of a tremor with gratitude, set the candelabra before the doctor. The doctor opened his mouth, tried to say something, but said nothing: he could not speak.
Frequently Asked Questions about A Work Of Art
What is "A Work of Art" by Anton Chekhov about?
"A Work of Art" by follows Sasha Smirnov, who gives his doctor an antique bronze candelabra as a thank-you gift for saving his life. The candelabra features two nude female figures in provocative poses, making it socially embarrassing to display. Dr. Koshelkov passes the gift to lawyer Uhov, who passes it to comedian Shashkin, who sells it to an antique dealer—who turns out to be Sasha’s own mother, Madame Smirnov. The story ends with Sasha joyfully returning the candelabra to the doctor as the matching "pair," completing a brilliantly ironic circle.
What are the main themes of "A Work of Art" by Chekhov?
The major themes of "A Work of Art" include social conformity, hypocrisy, and the tension between art and morality. Each character—Dr. Koshelkov, lawyer Uhov, and comedian Shashkin—privately admires the erotic candelabra but publicly rejects it out of fear of social judgment. Chekhov also explores gratitude and obligation, as Sasha’s persistent generosity traps the doctor into accepting a gift he cannot refuse. The circular plot structure reinforces the theme of moral paralysis: nobody has the independence to simply keep a beautiful object.
What is the irony in Chekhov's "A Work of Art"?
The story is layered with situational irony. The central irony is that each recipient genuinely admires the candelabra but refuses to keep it, creating a chain of gift-giving driven by embarrassment rather than generosity. The greatest ironic twist comes at the ending: the candelabra is sold to an antique dealer who is Sasha’s mother, Madame Smirnov, and Sasha returns it to Dr. Koshelkov as the "pair" to the original. Additionally, the characters use the same lofty language about art and beauty to give away the gift that Sasha used to present it, highlighting their hypocrisy.
What is the significance of the candelabra in "A Work of Art"?
The antique bronze candelabra serves as the story’s central symbol. It features two nude female figures "in the costume of Eve" in provocative poses, making it simultaneously a genuine work of artistic craftsmanship and a source of social embarrassment. The candelabra represents the conflict between aesthetic appreciation and social propriety—every character who receives it acknowledges its beauty but cannot reconcile that beauty with Victorian-era moral standards. Its circular journey from the Smirnovs to the doctor and back also symbolizes the futility of trying to escape uncomfortable truths.
What literary devices does Chekhov use in "A Work of Art"?
Chekhov employs several literary devices in "A Work of Art." Situational irony drives the plot as the candelabra circles back to its origin. Hyperbole appears when Dr. Koshelkov calls the statue a "phantasmagoria" and compares it to the work of the "serpent-tempter." Chekhov uses biblical allusion when lawyer Uhov suggests covering the figures with "fig-leaves," referencing Adam and Eve. The circular plot structure itself is a device that reinforces the satirical message, and Chekhov’s use of repetition—Sasha’s refrain "I am the only son of my mother"—creates comic effect while revealing his manipulative persistence.
Who are the main characters in "A Work of Art" by Chekhov?
The story features five key characters. Sasha Smirnov is a young man who presents the candelabra as a gift of gratitude; he is the "only son of his mother" and seems genuinely oblivious to the statue’s impropriety. Dr. Ivan Nikolaevitch Koshelkov is the doctor who saved Sasha’s life and becomes the first reluctant recipient. Lawyer Uhov is the doctor’s bachelor friend who also cannot keep it due to his mother and clients visiting. Shashkin is a comic actor who receives the candelabra on his benefit night but fears the judgment of visiting actresses. Madame Smirnov, Sasha’s mother, runs the antique business and unknowingly repurchases the candelabra.
What is the ending of "A Work of Art" by Chekhov?
The ending delivers Chekhov’s masterful comic twist. After comedian Shashkin sells the candelabra to a local antique dealer, it turns out the dealer is Madame Smirnov—Sasha’s own mother. Sasha then returns to Dr. Koshelkov’s office, beaming with joy, to present what he believes is the "pair" to the original candelabra. The doctor "opened his mouth, tried to say something, but said nothing: he could not speak." This circular ending is both hilarious and thematically perfect, showing that social hypocrisy only delays the inevitable.
What type of humor does Chekhov use in "A Work of Art"?
Chekhov uses satirical humor to expose the gap between what his characters say and what they actually think. Each man who receives the candelabra privately delights in it—the lawyer exclaims "Ah, deuce take it!" and calls it "exquisite" and "ravishing"—but publicly claims he cannot keep it for moral reasons. Chekhov also employs comic repetition, with Sasha’s persistent refrain about being "the only son of my mother" becoming increasingly absurd. The humor is gentle rather than cruel: Chekhov laughs with his characters as much as at them, making the story a warm social comedy rather than a bitter satire.
What is the moral or message of "A Work of Art" by Chekhov?
Chekhov’s central message is a critique of social conformity overriding personal judgment. Every character who receives the candelabra admires it as beautiful art, yet none has the courage to keep it because they fear what others—patients, clients, audiences, servants—will think. The story suggests that when people let social opinion dictate their actions, they lose their independence and authenticity. Chekhov does not moralize directly; instead, the circular plot speaks for itself: the candelabra always returns because the underlying problem—moral cowardice—is never actually confronted.
When was "A Work of Art" by Chekhov written and what inspired it?
"A Work of Art" was written by during his early career in the 1880s, when he was producing hundreds of short humorous sketches for Russian magazines. The story reflects the social atmosphere of late 19th-century Russia, where middle-class professionals—doctors, lawyers, actors—were expected to maintain strict standards of public decorum. Chekhov, himself a trained physician, drew on his familiarity with the medical profession for the character of Dr. Koshelkov. The story belongs to Chekhov’s comic period, before he shifted toward the more melancholic realism of his later masterworks.
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