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LOMOV: [greatly moved] Honoured Stepan Stepanovitch, do you think I may count on her consent?
CHUBUKOV: Why, of course, my darling, and... as if she won’t consent! She’s in love; egad, she’s like a lovesick cat, and so on. Shan’t be long! [Exit.]
LOMOV: It’s cold... I’m trembling all over, just as if I’d got an examination before me. The great thing is, I must have my mind made up. If I give myself time to think, to hesitate, to talk a lot, to look for an ideal, or for real love, then I’ll never get married. Brr... It’s cold! Natalya Stepanovna is an excellent housekeeper, not bad-looking, well-educated. What more do I want? But I’m getting a noise in my ears from excitement. [Drinks] And it’s impossible for me not to marry. In the first place, I’m already 35 — a critical age, so to speak. In the second place, I ought to lead a quiet and regular life. I suffer from palpitations, I’m excitable and always getting awfully upset; at this very moment my lips are trembling, and there’s a twitch in my right eyebrow. But the very worst of all is the way I sleep. I no sooner get into bed and begin to go off, when suddenly something in my left side gives a pull, and I can feel it in my shoulder and head... I jump up like a lunatic, walk about a bit and lie down again, but as soon as I begin to get off to sleep there’s another pull! And this may happen twenty times... [Natalya Stepanovna comes in.]
Explanation:
Though Lomov desired and proposed to marry Natalya, he was sceptical about whether she would accept his hand. And so, Natalya's assent to this marriage is a question Lomov posed to Chubukov. According to Chubukov, Natalya cannot refuse since she yearned for Lomov's affection, and he assured Lomov of the same. He then goes inside to call his daughter, Natalya.
Lomov was anxious and trembled all over as if he had a test in front of him. He believed it was to his advantage that he had already made up his mind to propose to Natalya; because if he allowed himself more time to think about it, his marriage would end up being postponed or, worse yet, called off entirely.
Given that Natalya Stepanovna is average-looking(not bad-looking), a superb housekeeper, and well-educated, he reassured himself that she would make a wonderful companion. And so, according to Lomov, Natalya could be an ideal life partner for him.
Lomov was very excited about his marriage proposal to Natalya. He could hear noises in his ears as he reacted to the news. He drank some water and thought about his future, and he decided he didn't want to delay his wedding because he was already 35 years old. He also had a palpitation health issue, which caused his heart rate to increase during times of stress, his lips to tremble, and his eyebrows to twitch.
Above all else, Lomov had a hard time falling asleep. He would often experience a pull in his shoulder and the side of his head while sleeping. This problem has been happening around 20 times a day.
As Lomov was thinking about his health issues, Natalya Stepanovna entered the scene.
Meaning of difficult words:
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S.No
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Words
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Meaning
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1.
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Consent | To give permission for something to happen |
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2.
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Lovesick cat | Someone who is in a state of love-yearning |
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3.
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Egad | A mild expression of surprise |
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4.
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Hesitate | To pause or delay something |
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5.
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Lunatic | Refers to a person who is mentally ill |
Reference:
National Council of Educational Research and Training (2007). The Proposal - Anton Chekov (pp. 142-161). Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi.
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